S/PV.2508 Security Council

In accordance with decisions taken at previous meetings .on this item [2504th to 2507th meetings], I invite the representative of Angola to take a place at the Council table. I invite the representatives of Argentina, Benin, Botswana, Brazil, Canada, Cuba, Egypt, Ethiopia, the German Democratic Republic, India, the Libyan Arab Janiahiriya,. Mauritania, Mozambique, Nigeria, Portugal, Somalia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Republic of Tanzania, Yugoslavia and Zambia to take the places reserved for them at the side of the Council chamber. At the invitation of the President, Mr. de Figueiredo (Angola) took a place at the Council table; Mr. Muiiiz (Argentina), Mr. Ogouma (Benin), Mr. Legwaila (Botswana), Mr. Maciel (Brazil), Mr. Pelletier (Canada), Mr. Roa Kouri (Cuba), Mr. Khalil (Egypt), Mr. Deressa (Ethiopia), Mr. Ott (German Democratic Republic), Mr. Krishnan (India), Mr. Treiki (Libyan Arab Jamahiriya), Mr. Ould Hamody (Mauritania), Mr. DOS Sanfos (Mozambique), .Mr. Anyaoku (Nigeria), Mr. Medina (Portugal), Mr. Adan (Somalia), Mr. von Schirnding (South Africa), Mr, Giikce (Turkey), Mr. Rupia (United Republic of Tanzania), Mr. Golob (Yugoslavia) and Mr. Lusaka (Zambia) took the places reserved for them at the side of the Council chamber.

Members of the Council have before them document S/16226, which contains the text of a draft resolution submitted by Angola, Botswana, Guyana, Jordan, Malta, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Togo, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zaire, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

I wish to assure you, Mr. President, of my delegation’s great pride and satisfaction at seeing you preside over the Council in this month of December. The qualities of patience and tact which, without question, you possess, and your wellknown and proven diplomatic skills, combine to give’ my delegation the assurance that the conduct of the business of the Council this month will be smooth and efficient. 4. I take this opportunity also to congratulate your predecessor, Mr. Gauci, of Malta, for the very efticient and capable manner in which he presided over the deliberations of the Council in the month of November. 5. My delegation is in complete solidarity with the Government and the people of Angola in respect of the question we are now considering. We recall that on several occasions in the past the Governments of Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique and Zambia have had cause to complain to the Council about acts of aggression directed against their sovereign territories by South Africa. The Governments of Swaziland and Zimbabwe, while not formally complaining to the Council, have also been victims of such actions on the part of South Africa. 6. When all of the independent States which are South Africa’s neighbours at various times accuse South Africa of aggression, it is clear that we are witness to a phenomenon which cannot be explained in terms of a desire by those States to distract attention from internal problems, as the representative of the racist Pretoria regime so simplistically sought to do before the Council last Friday in respect of Angola [2504th meeting]. The explanation needs to be sought rather in the attitude of the accused State towards its neighbours.. In this regard 7. Parallel to this policy of repression within is a conscious policy towards its neighbours designed to make southern Africa safe for apartheid. With that in view, the racist regime seeks to deprive the oppressed majority in South Africa of any external support, whether moral or material, in their effort to bring an end to their oppression, and it seeks to destabilize those neighbouring States so as to weaken them or to create or reinforce dependence on South Africa. It is in that context that South Africa’s aggression against Angola is seen. 8. The devastating effects which this aggression has had and continues to have on Angola have been well documented in the White Paper which the Angolan delegation has made available to the Council [S/16198, annex]. The continuation of that situation threatens disastrous consequences, not only for Angola itself but, ultimately, also for regional and international peace and security. The Council is therefore called upon to make a positive and forthright response to Angola’s complaint and to South Africa’s open defiance of its authority and its decisions. 9. South Africa’s aggression against Angolais nothing recent. It dates back to 1975, when South African troops invaded Angola moments after the proclamation of the latter’s independence in a vain attempt to rob the Angolan people of their hard-won victories in the liberation struggle. Since then, the aggressive acts have continued and intensified. The details of those acts are well known to members of the Council. 10. What is more, part of the territory of Angola continues to be under military occupation by five battalions of the armed forces of the racist Pretoria regime. This is a clear and open violation of the Charter of the United Nations and of international law. This occupation persists despite several decisions by the Council calling for the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of South African forces [resolutions 428 (Z978), 447 (Z979), 454 (2979) and 475 (1980)]. That call was sustained and reinforced by the Seventh Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries, held at New Delhi from 7 to 12 March 1983 [see S/Z5675 and CorrJ and 2, annex, sect. I, para. 621, as well as by the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, held at New Delhi from 23 to 29 November [see S/16206, annex; Final CommuniquP, para. 161. 11. This aggression and occupation are compounded by another kind of interference in the internal affairs of 12. The persistence of this situation is, in part, the fruit of the permissiveness which has always been shown towards South Africa by its major Western friends, even in the face of repeated calls by the international community for action to force compliance by South Africa with the decisions of the Council. We have not forgotten that it was the negative vote of a Western permanent member that prevented the Council in 1981 [i3OOth meeting] from adopting a resolution which would have had the overwhelming support of the international community. Those who make such accommodations with apartheid undercut the efforts of the intematfional community to achieve change in southern Africa and give comfort and encouragement to the racists in Pretoria, thereby making possible situations such as that in Angola, which now occupies our attention. 13. The Council cannot, therefore, consider its duty done if it simply listens to a debate and adds yet another resolution to the list of those which South Africa continues to ignore. There must surely now be a recognition of the need to ensure that the Council’s authority is respected and that this body can assert itself to protect a Member State against violations of the Charter by another. The people of Angola deserve and have a right to such protection by the United Nations, which is committed to the equal rights of nations large and small. 14. The Government of Guyana, undistracted by the diversionary South African manoeuvre contained in document S/16219 of 15 December, calls for the withdrawal of all South African troops from Angola. That withdrawal must be immediate and without prejudice to the sovereign right of the Government and the people of Angola to make and to pursue whatever arrangements they may consider appropriate for their defence against external attack. South Africa must show the strictest respect for Angola’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity. 15. We also call for the payment by South Africa of full compensation for the loss of life and material dam- ’ age which Angolans have been made to suffer as a result of South Africa’s invasion and occupation. 16. .We see these as being among the essential elements of what should constitute the response-by the Council to the complaint brought by Angola. We trust that those States which wield influence with the Pretoria regime will exert that influence to help to promote rather than imperil peace and stability in southern Africa. 18. My delegation reaffirms its support for the Government and people of Angola, for their right to live in peace and security with their territorial integrity intact and to pursue their own development free from outside interference. The Council has a solemn obligation to secure for the Government and people of Angola the free and unfettered exercise of that right.

You have put to good use, Mr. President, the many excellent qualities of your previous high office in the exercise of the present one, the presidency of the Council for this month. We have all benefited as a result. I wish to express to you therefore both my pleasure at your assumption of the presidency and my sincere compliments on your perception and perseverance, which have guided us in overcoming the difftculties faced by the Council so far this month. 20. Permit me also to thank all those delegations that _ have generously expressed appreciation of Malta’s presidency last month. I should like especially to thank those of our colleagues on the Council whose term expires this month, and to express my appreciation of their valued co-operation over the past year. 21. The eloquent appeal made by our colleague from Angola [250&h meeting] for the assistance of the Council in shielding his country from aggression should inevitably strike a responsive chord among Council members, and my delegation for one will respond accordingly. 22. The details of the many aggressive acts by South Africa against Angola, which have been reflected in the White Paper reproduced in the .annex to document S/16198, make sorry reading. Most certainly they are not conducive to a peaceful future in southern Africa. 23. The big-stick policy and attitude of South Africa, both in its internal administration and in its illegal 24. In this, his sixth complaint against South Africa since 1976, the representative of Angola has given even more recent, indeed current, details of further armed intervention by South African forces in his country. In his statement the genuine concerns of his Government and people over the repeated attacks and prolonged occupation of parts of, Angola by South Africa were fully reflected. These are shared by my Government. Though small and geographically distant, we view with dismay the deterioration of the situation in southern Africa and deeply regret the grievous harm caused to Angola’s infrastructure and economic development and the loss of life inflicted. 25. I should therefore like to assure Mr. de Figueiredo, whom, even before his country’s independence, I first had the pleasure of meeting in our more carefree student days at Columbia University, that my Govemment will within its modest means continue to strive to bring about the peaceful change necessary in the southem part of Africa. For this to be achieved a prerequisite is the independence of Namibia and a changed attitude by South Africa towards its own inhabitants and towards its neighbouring countries. 26. Even against the unfortunate background of South Africa’s known record of delay and prevarication, we still hope that its most recent letter [S/16229] portends the beginnings of a change of attitude. We will study and await, the outcome of a fair and objective assessment of that letter in due course, but we cannot hide our regret that the date of the letter itself coincided almost exactly with the latest military offensive against Angola, whose openness and disposition for negotiations have been reaffirmed time and time again. 27. The withdrawal of South African troops from Angola is therefore called for. An admonition by the Council against the use of force is in order. Malta has co-operated in the negotiation of the draft resolution that will be introduced. We have urged restraint in language in order to promote new attitudes in the coming year, which we sincerely hope will be a better one for all of us here and for the Organization. We hope also that there will be no dissenting voice against the draft resolution. 28. The ‘PRESIDENT: I shall now make a statement in my capacity as representative of the NETHERLANDS. 29. My delegation has followed closely the debate in the Council ‘on the complaint put forward by the Government of Angola concerning South Africa’s aggres- 30. In view of the grave consequences which may ensue from this violation of Angola’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, my Government deems it imperative that the Council, in exercise of its responsibility under the Charter for the maintenance of international peace and security, should take urgent action to redress this intolerable situation. 31. The representative of Angola presented to us in his statement [2504th meeting] a vivid picture of the human suffering and economic dislocation created by the armed intervention of South Africa. We fully understand the bitterness felt about these unprovoked attacks in Angola, a country which, as Mr. de Figueiredo has pointed out, does not even share a common border with South Africa. For this reason, my Government has never hesitated to condemn in the strongest possible terms South Africa’s unjustifiable invasion of Angola as a blatant violation of the Charter of the United Nations. 32. According to press reports, last Saturday and Sunday, South African planes bombed targets 300 kilometres inside Angolan territory in the provinces of Huila and Kuando Kubango, exacting a heavy toll in civilian lives. On this occasion, I wish to express once more our heartfelt sympathy to the Government of Angola for the loss of many innocent lives and for the extensive damage caused by South Africa’s actions. The Netherlands will continue to associate itself completely with the demand of the Government of Angola that all South African troops should be withdrawn immediately and unconditionally from its territory and that South Africa should scrupulously respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Angola. 33. My delegation also listened carefully to the statement made by the representative of South Africa [ibid.], who argued that his country’s decision to use military force against Angola has been prompted by the 34. Only two months ago, the Council concluded yet another debate on the question of Namibia by adopting resolution 539 (1983), which, among other things, rejected South Africa’s insistence on linking the independence of Namibia to issues outside the scope of resolution 435 (1978). In the course of that debate, my delegation had the opportunity to make it clear that, in the opinion of the Netherlands Government, it would be unacceptable for an early exercise by the Namibian people of their internationally recognized and inalienable right to self-determination and independence to be impeded because of the situation in a neighbouring country [248&h meeting, para. 651. Unfortunately, the South African Government has already informed the Secretary-General by its letter of 29 October [S/16206] that it has no intention of complying with the Council’s request to facilitate the immediate and unconditional implementation of the United Nations settlement plan for Namibia. 35. On the eve of the present debate, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Information of South Africa, Mr. R. F. Botha, informed the Secretary-General, in a letter dated 15 December, that South Africa was prepared to begin a disengagement of forces on 3 1 January 1984 for an initial period of 30 days if such a measure were to be reciprocated by Angola [see S/16219, annex IJ. 36. While my Government welcomes any move likely to contribute to a lessening of the tensions in the region, it wishes to reserve its final judgement on this proposal until it has received some clarifications. For instance, the present wording of the proposal leaves it a matter of conjecture whether South Africa intends to withdraw its forces completely from Angolan territory. We also note that in the letter implementation of the settlement plan for Namibia is once again being made contingent upon a solution of the issue of linkage. 37. My Government is deeply concerned about the consequence of South Africa’s illegal occupation of Namibia and its aggressive policies towards neighbouring countries for the future of the region and hence for international peace and security. In its own inter- ‘ests; the South African Government should use its power to defuse a situation which may plunge the region into even deeper turmoil, without sparing South Africa itself. A withdrawal of the South African forces 38. Finally, I wish to express the hope that the Government of South Africa, in complying with the Council’s demand to withdraw its troops from southern Angola and to respect Angola’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence, will make the gesture of good will needed to promote the political settlements without which it and its neighbours will know no enduring peace and prosperity. 39. I now resume my function as PRESIDENT. 40. It is my understanding that the Council is ready to proceed to the vote on the draft resolution before it. Unless I hear any objection, I shall put the draft resolu- - tion to the vote now. 41. I call on the representative of the United Kingdom, who wishes to make a statement before the voting.

Mr. President, it gives my delegation much pleasure to see you presiding over our deliberations. In the recent debate on the United Nations Peace-keeping Force in Cyprus, you demonstrated the outstanding talents which we in Europe have long known you to possess. It is good that your clarity of thought and ability to produce agreements through quiet diplomacy are now to be exercised on the world stage. 43. We also congratulate your predecessor, Mr. Gauci, for his notable achievements in presiding over the Council in November. He too had to bear a heavy burden in the matter of Cyprus. His skill and impartiality brought us in this and other matters to satisfactory conclusions and we thank him. 44. The United Kingdom is glad to be able to support the draft resolution which will shortly be put to the vote [ibid.]. Before I explain our vote, I should like to pay a tribute to the representative of Angola, who requested the present meetings of the Council, and to colleagues on the Council who have played a leading part in the formulation of the present draft resolution. They have enabled the Council to deal with this difficult and emotive question harmoniously and succinctly. This should serve as a model for our handling of other matters. 45. It is in that spirit of co-operation that the United Kingdom will vote in favour of the draft resolution, although we have reservations on certain points in it. My delegation does not consider that the last preambular paragraph and operative paragraph 2 fall within the provisions of Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations or constitute a finding or decision 46. The United Kingdom has consistently pressed, both in public and through quiet diplomacy, for the withdrawal of all South African forces from the territory of the Republic of Angola. We believe that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Angola must be fully respected. The withdrawal of these forces -indeed, of all foreign forces-would make a major contribution to the reduction of tensions and contentious issues in the region for which the Secretary-General called in his report of 29 August [S/25943]. 47. It was for this reason that, in my statements in the Council on 23 May [2439th meeting] and 28 October [2492nd meeting], I said that there was no justification for the presence of South African troops in Angola, and that those forces should be withdrawn. It was for this reason that, in a public speech in London on 14 November, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom, Sir Geoffrey Howe, deplored the trend towards greater violence, terrorist attacks and destabilization in southern Africa, and called on all parties strongly to respect the sanctity of national borders. As Sir Geoffrey Howe pointed out, cross-border violence is counter-productive. Crossborder raids cause fear, bitterness and .hatred, and make peaceful change much more difficult. 48. A number of speakers in this debate have called for the unconditional withdrawal of South African troops from Angola, and, indeed, the draft resolution says this. But our main concern, which we trust others share, is that the objective of the draft resolution -that is, the withdrawal of South African forces from Angola-should be achieved. My Government has therefore welcomed the indication in the letter dated 15 December from the South African Minister of Foreign Alfairs and Information to the Secretary-General that South Africa would begin to disengage its forces in Angola [see S/16219, annex rJ. This is a major opportunity for progress towards peace and the reduction of tension in the area. This matter now needs to be dealt with in a co-operative way and through confidential exchanges between the parties. 49. There are a number of very obvious and very considerable difliculties and sensitivities in the present situation. We understand the concern which exists in various quarters. But unquestionably an opportunity now exists for further progress through quiet diplomacy. In the interests of all the inhabitants of the region, my Government sincerely hopes that any opportunity to move away from conflict and towards peaceful solutions will be fully explored. In favour: China, France, Guyana, Jordan, Malta, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Poland, Togo, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Zaire, Zimbabwe. Against: None. Abstaining: United States of America. The draft resolution was adopted by 14 votes to none, with I abstention [resolution 545 (1983)].

I now call on the representative of the United States, who has asked to be allowed to make a statement after the voting.

Mr. President, I have already expressed in the privacy of your bilateral consultations and in our informal consultations my personal regard and that of my country for the very great energy, judgement, good sense, imagination and effectiveness with which you have conducted the affairs of the Council during this month. 53. We have also put on record, but I am happy to reiterate today, our very high regard for the conduct of the presidency under your immediate predecessor, the representative of Malta. 54. We feel, Mr. President, that in your conduct of the presidency you have shown unusual determination and creativity, which have marked so many of your country’s most distinguished accomplishments through history-here in the search for a consensus and for solutions to the terrible problems that confront us. 55. My country, together with a good many others, has been deeply involved for a number of years in the quest for peace in southern Africa, in the quest for independence for Namibia, in the quest for the pacification of that troubled area. We remain today deeply involved in that quest. This effort has been, and remains, an issue of high priority for the United States. 56. In the course of our quest, we have consulted closely with Angola, South Africa and other interested States in and outside the region which also seek peace in the region. The Namibian political parties, our partners in the contact group, the other African Governments, the Secretary-General-all of us have spoken together again and again in the search for peace in this troubled region. The Secretary-General’s role in this process has been particularly constructive. We are all indebted to him for his constructive involvement in this search for peace in the region. 58. A durable settlement of the problem of southern Africa clearly depends on mutual respect for the essential principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity of all States in the region. We further believe that such a settlement, if it is to be achieved, must take account of the security of all in the region. We therefore hope that once a cease-fire comes into effect it will extend beyond the initial 30-day period proposed by the South African Government in order that these conditions have a -chance to take hold. 59. The South African announcement underscores the validity of the effort in which we and our partners in the contact group have been and are involved. We continue to believe that this effort provides the best hope of bringing lasting peace to the area. 60. The questions before us now are essentially these: do we seize on this significant new development, this hopeful and encouraging first step, and allow it to be considered and tested by those most directly involved, or do we reject it out of hand as meaningless and choose instead to engage in this forum in fruitless recriminations? The alternatives are clear, and so should be the answer--clear to all who genuinely seek peace in the region. 61. The position of my Government is in any case clear. We are deeply concerned with the escalating cycle of violence in southern Africa. We are particularly disturbed by the problem of cross-border violence. We have urged and will continue to urge military restraint and respect for national boundaries. We do not believe there are military solutions to the conflicts in southern Africa. 62. The policies of the United States are grounded in the belief that negotiated solutions are both possible and essential. Cross-border violence cannot be condoned, whether it be in the form of terrorist attack by externally based organizations or violation of the territorial integrity of Angola by South African forces. Neither contributes to the process of building a structure of peace which is so ardently desired by all those who live in the region. 63. Our own effort to pursue peace in southern Africa is moving forward actively through contacts with the 64. Each of us must decide whether to pursue the new hope towards peaceful reconciliation or to bury it in mistrust and condemnation. For my Government the choice is clear. We do not intend to let this opportunity pass us by; thus, we have abstained in the vote. 73. The Pretoria regime is making desperate attempts to justify its despicable actions not only in Angola but in all of southern Africa. And these despicable and pathetic excuses do not deserve to be taken seriously, though unfortunately the United Nations must deal with the consequences arising from the racist acts which necessitate those excuses. However, the people of Angola do deserve a response from the Council, to which they have appealed so many times. And they deserve redress for their grievances and an end to the misery imposed on them by the forces of imperialism and racism. 67. I should also like to thank all those who spoke out in support of Angola’s position, inter alia, on behalf of a State’s right to territorial integrity and national sovereignty, its right to defend itself against aggression, its right to demand the withdrawal of South African racist troops from its soil and its right to fight for justice and peace.

The representative of Angola has asked to speak. I now call on him. 66. Mr. de FIGUEIREDO (Angola): Mr. President, on behalf of my Government and my delegation, I wish to express our appreciation of your able handling of this debate and your assistance both in and outside the Council chamber. The Government and the people of the Netherlands gave valuable support to the liberation struggle of the Angolan people and have since shown solidarity with our aims and causes. 68. The Council has just adopted a resolution 75. The Council has heard my appeal, an appeal by expressing that position; however, it is with regret that my Government conveyed by me. But in no possible I point out that this is the sixth resolution adopted on manner can I ever convey the anguish of the sons and the subject by the Council since 1976. As the supreme daughters of Angola, the grief of the survivors, the peace-keeping organ of the United Nations, the Council misery of the injured, the desperation of the homeless, has the political, legal and moral obligation under the the terror of the raped, the fear of the kidnapped and the Charter to ensure implementation .of its resolutions, loss of the dead and dying. The racist troops invaded which are mandatory. In fact, the Charter itself pro- Angola in May 1978 and butchered over 1,000 civilians vides the means to ensure such compliance. It remains at Cassinga. Now, since 1981, there are daily Cassingas for the Council to invoke those measures. all over southern Angola. 69. Peace is serious business. So is war, especially for those on the battlefield, facing the array of sophisticated arms technology wielded by the racist armed forces of South Africa. 76. Will the Council continue to be simply a forum for anguished appeals and official catharsis? Or will the Council finally shoulder in every sense its responsibilities under the Charter and vindicate the reason for which the United Nations was founded? 70. The Council has heard once more the racist regime’s incredible assertions. In fact, Pretoria’s version of the situation in southern Africa in general, and in southern Angola in particular, gives rise to the thought that Pretoria probably believes that South Africa is situated in another time and place: in which case, of course, the racist regime’s assertions make perfect, though hallucinatory, sense!

Assuming that we might not have a formal meeting before the end of this year and now that the Council has, as I understand it, already concluded its consideration today of the item on its agenda, may I be allowed to say a few words, since Poland’s term of membership in this body is coming to an end. 71. What the representative of the racist regime referred to as “security operations” in southern Angola [see 2504th meeting, paru. 351 are, in fact, since 1981 the occupation of parts of my country by five battalions. 74. The resolution which has just been adopted requests the Secretary-General to monitor its implementation. My Government will surely request another meeting of the Council in early 1984 for this purpose, at which time the Council and I will see the truth behind the recent racist offer. 77. The Government and the people of Angola wait for an answer. A lutu continua!; a vitoriu e certu! 79. This is the fourth time my country has served as a non-permanent member of the Council. There have 80. At no point in the past two decades have the stepped-up policy of confrontation and the heightened and technologically advanced ‘arms race posed such a threat to mankind, which is faced with the real possibility of a thermonuclear catastrophe. Never before could any conflict the Council has been dealing with -even most remotely; or seemingly without further consequences and implications for international security-have become a pilot flame for conflagration on a much larger scale. 81. Faithful to the principles of its foreign policy, which is consistently pursued in the interest of peace together with its socialist friends and allies, Poland has stood firm on the position that the preservation of contacts and dialogue is of vital importance for easing tensions and improving the international situation. Whenever possible, we tried to introduce an element of restraint into our dialogue and deliberations. During the past two years we have maintained this line in the Council. Both the records of the Council containing our statements and the position presented during the consultations-which is known to the members of the Council-are evidence of that. We have been convinced that it is always possible to seek constructive solutions as long as the parties are ready to demonstrate the political will and understanding for international security. 82. In the course of serving our present term on the Council, we have, as on the previous occasions, made every effort to contribute to reducing hotbeds of tension and to extinguishing the flames of conflict, for in doing so we have pursued an important element of the struggle to strengthen international security and done our duty as a member of the Council. 83. Our activity in the Council stemmed from our obligation to enhance the national security of Poland 84. Serving on the Council is a particular and unique experience for every Member of the Organization. Frustrations and feelings of limitation notwithstanding, it is the sense of fulfilled duty that prevails. 85. In-concluding our present term, we feel that we have spared no effort and that we have tried consistently to discharge the mandate vested in us as best we could. 86. My delegation wishes to thank all delegations that have been with us on the Council, either full term or for just one year, for the opportunity to work together in the interest of peace. Our thanks go also to the members of the Secretariat. To the delegations that will join the Council in January 1984, and to all the other delegations on the Council, we wish every success in discharging the responsible mandate of the Council as provided for in the Charter of the United Nations.

It is, of,course, Article 28 of the Charter of the United Nations which reminds us that “The Security Council shall be so organized as to be able to function eontinuously”. So it could be, theoretically speaking, that the Council might meet on the last day of the year. But let me reassure the members of the Council that I have no immediate plans to convene a meeting on that occasion. 88. Indeed, this may be the last time this year that the representatives of Guyana, Jordan, Poland, Togo and Zaire are sitting at this table. I am sure that I am speaking on :behalf of the remaining members of the Council in expressing our thanks for their contributions to our work. 89. We are facing a world situation with much tension and many crises. I can only express the hope that in the coming year the Council will be able to play an active and also decisive role in promoting stability, peace and security. The meeting rose at 4.45 p.m. HOW TO OBTAIN UNITED NATIONS 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 Unies sont en vente dans les librairies et les agences depositaires du monde entier. Informez-vous auprts de votre libraire ou adressez-vous a : Nations Unies, Section des ventes, New York ou Genive. COMO CONSEGUIR PUBLICACIONES DE LAS NACIONES UNIDAS Las publicaciones de las Naciones Unidas esdn en venta en librerias y casas distribuidoras en todas pattes del mundo. Consulte a su librero o ditijase a: Naciones Unidas, Section de Ventas, Nueva York o Ginebra. Litho in United Nations, New York 00300 9040205-March 1992-2.050