A/RES/2931(XXVII) GA

ResolutioJ18 adopted on the nporh of the Firat Committee 15 and elaboration of international instruments or United Nations arrangements relative to direct television broadcasting. 2 081 st plenary meeting 9 November 1972 2930 (XXVII). World Disarmament Conference The General Assembly, Conscious of the responsibility of the United Nations under the Charter for the maintenance of international peace and for disarmament, Convinced that all peoples of the world have a vital interest in the success of disarmament negotiations, Believing it imperative that all States exert further efforts for the adoption of effeotive measures of disarma- ment and, more particuJa.rly, nuclear disarmament, Believing also that a world disarmament conference could promote and facilitate the realization of such aims, Deeply convinced that substantial progress in the field of disarmament can be achieved only by ensuring adequate conditions of security for all States, Convinced also that all States should contribute to the adoption of measures for the achievement of this goal, Recalling resolution 2833 (XXVI) of 16 Decem- ber 1971, in which the General Assembly expressed the conviction that it is most desirable to take immediate steps in order that careful consideration be givcn to the convening, following adequate preparation, of a world disarmament conference open ,to all States, Taking note of the report of the Secretary-General,13 containing the views and suggestions of States on the questions relating to the holding of a world disarma- ment conforence, Noting also all the views and suggestions expressed by Member States during the debate in plenary meeting and in the First Commititee at the current session, l. Invites ,the Governments of all States to exert further efforts with a view to creating adequate con- ditions for the convening of a world disarmament con- ference at an appropriate time; 2. Considers it necessary to set up a special com- mittee to examine aH the views and suggestions ex- pressed by Governments on the convening of a world disarmament conference and related problems and to submH, on the basis of consensus, a report to the Gen- eral Assembly at its twenty-eighth session; 3. Decides to establish a Special Committee on the World Disarmament Conference consisting of thirty- five Member States, to be appointed by the President of the General Assembly after consultation with all the regional groups and taking due consideration of the necessity to ensure adequate political and geo- graphical representation; 4. Requests the Secretary-General to render all necessary assistance to the Special Committee in its work; 13 A/8817 and Add.1. 5. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its twen-ty-eighth session the item entitled "World Disarmament Conference". • 2093rd plenary meeting 29 November 1972 • • The President of the General Assembly subsequently in- formed the Secretary-Genera[H that, in pursuance of para- graph 3 of the abuve resolution, he had "decided to appoint the following thirty-one Member States to serve on the Spe- cial Committee on the World Disarmament Conference: ARGENTINA, BELGIUM, BRAZIL, BULGARIA, CANADA, CHILE, COLOMBIA, CzECHOSLOVAKIA, EGYPT, ETIUOPIA, HUNOARY, INDIA, INDONESIA, IRAN, ITALY, ]APAN, LIBERIA, MEXICO, MON· OOLIA, MOROCCO, NETHERLANDS, NIGERIA, PAXISTAN, POLAND, ROMANIA, SPAIN, SRI LANKA, SWEDEN, UNION OF SovIBT So- CIALIST REPUBLICS, YUGOSLAVIA and ZAMBIA". He added that "In accordance with the widely expressed wish, the remaining four seats will be reserved for the nuclear States which may wish to become members of the Special Committee in the future". 2931 (XXVII). lmplementation of the results of the Conference of Non-Nuclear-Weapon States The General Assembly, Recalling its resolution 2664 (XXV) of 7 December 1970, Having considered the report of the International Atomic Energy Agency for the year 1971/1972,15 A ware of the steps taken in amending article VI of the statute of the International Atomic Energy Agcncv to expand the membership of the Board of Governors, Noting that the International Atomic Energy Agency is carrying out a survey of the market for nuclear power in selected developing countries to assess the extent of the market for various types and sizes of nuclear reactors, Noting further that the number of countries and in- ternational organizations participating in the Interna- tional Nuclear Information System has increased and that the system is to operate with full subject scope by the end of 1972, Notiug with satisfaction that the Intcrnational Atomic Energy Agency is continuing its efforts to ensure the supply to its member States, when requircd, of special fissionable materials, including materials for power reactors, Taking note of the increasc in the target for volun- tary contributions to the programme of technical assist- ance of the International Atomic Energy Agcncy to $US 3 million, 1. Expresses appreciation for the action taken by the International Atomic Energy Agency on the rec- ommendations of the Conference of Non-Nuclear- Weapon States; 2. Hopes that, in the context of development goals, the over-all expansion in resources available to the International Atomic Energy Agency for technical co- operation will continue; 14 A/8990. 1r; International Atomic Energy Agency, Annual Report, 1 July 1971-30 Junt 1972 (Vienna, July 1972); transmitted to the members of the General Assembly by a note of the Secre- tary-General (A/8774). 16 General Assembly-Twenty-seventh Session 3. Invites the International Atomic Energy Agency to keep under review ways and meaos of allowing the developing countries to benefit fully, and in accordance with their respective stages of nuclear industrialization, from the technical assistance provided by international organizations; 4. Requests the Secretary-General to transmit to the Director General of the lnternational Atomic Energy Agency the records of the twenty-seventh ses- sion of the General Assembly relating to the recom- mendations of the Conference of Non-Nuclear-Weapon States; 5. Invites the lnternational Atomic Energy Agency, in consultation with the specialized agencies and othcr bodies concerned, to submit, in its annual report to the General Assembly, information on further action con- cerning the implementation of the results of the Con- ference of Non-Nuclear-Weapon States. 2093rd plenary meeting 29 November 1972 2932 (XXVII). General and complete disarmament A The General Assembly, Conscious that ali armed conflicts and the use of any weapons bring suffering and that the only effective meaos of eliminating this suffering is through the elimination of armed confl.icts and through general and complete disarmament, Recalling the general rules of international law that the use of weapons that cause unnecessary suflering is especially forbidden and that only military targets are legitimate objects of attack, Convinced that the widesprcad use of many weapons and the emergence of new methods of warfare that cause unnecessary suffering or are indiscriminate call urgently for renewed efforts by Governments to seek, through legal meaos, the prohibition of the use of such weapons and of indiscriminate and cruel methods of warfare and, if possible, through measures of disarma- ment, the elimination of specific, cspecially cruel or indiscriminate weapons, Conscious that incendiary weapons have always con- stituted a category of arms viewed with horror and that the International Conference on Human Rights, held at Teheran in 1968, in its resolution XXIII on human rights in armed conflicts16 considered napalm bombing to be among the methods and meaos that erode human rights, Noting that complete proposals for both elimination and non-use of incendiary weapons were advanced at the disarmament negotiations in 1933 and that pro- posals have recently been made to prohibit or restrict their use, Recalling that the Secretary-General, in bis reports on human rights in armed conflicts of 20 November 1969 and 18 September 1970, stated the view that the legality or otherwise of the use of napalm would seem to be a question calling for study that might eventua11y 16 Final Act of the lnternational Conference on Human Ri¡:hts (United Nations publication, Sales No.: E.68.XIV.2), p. 18. be resolved in an international document that would clarify the situation,17 Recalling f urther that, in response to an exprcss sug- gestion made by the Secretary-Gencral18 in bis report of 18 September 1970, the General Asscmbly, by para- graph 5 of resolution 2852 (XXVI) of 20 Decembcr 1971, requested him to prepare as soon as possiblc, with the help of qualified governmental consultant cx- perts, a report on napalm and other inccndiary wcap- ons and al] aspects of their possiblc use, Noting that thc report of the Secrctary-Gcncral cn- titled Napalm ami Other Incendiary Weapon.s and All Aspects of Their Possible Vse 19 concludes that the massive spread of fire through incendiary wcapons is largely indi~criminatc in its cffects on military and civilian targets,20 Noting further thc conclusion that burn injuries, whether sustained directly from the action of incen- diaries or as a result of fires initiatcd by them, are intcnsely painful and requirc exceptional resourccs for their medica\ treatment that are far bcyoncl the reach of most countrics, ~1 Noting finally the conclusion that the rapid increase in the military use of these weapons is but one aspect of the more general phenomenon of the incrcasing mobilization of science and technology for purposes of total war, alongside which the long-upheld principle of the immunity of the non-combatant appears to be receding from the military consciousness, and that these trends have grave implications for the wor1d conununity / 2 1. W elcomes the report of the Secretary-General entitled Napalm and Other lncendiary Weapons and Ali Aspects of Their Possibk Use and expresscs ap- preciation to him for having submitted it without delay; 2. Takcs note of the views expresscd in the rcport regarding the use, production, development and stockpiling of napalm and other incendiary weapons; 3. Deplores thc use of napalm and other inccndiary weapons in all armed conflicts; 4. Commends the report to the attention of ali Governments and pcoples; 5. Requests the Secretary-Gencrnl to publish the report for wide circulation; 6. Requests the Secretary-General to circulate the report to the Governments of Member States for their comments and to report on these comments to the General Assembly at its twenty-eighth session. B The General Assembly, 2093rd plenary meeting 29 Novembcr 1972 Recalling its resolution 2602 A (XXIV) of 16 December 1969, whereby it appealed to the Govern- ments of the Union of Soviet Socialist Rcpublics and the United States of America, which on 17 November 1969 had initiated bilateral ncgotiations on thc limita- 11 A/7720, para. 200; A/8052, para. 125. 1s A/8052, para. 126. 19 A/8803/Rev.1 (United Nations publication, Sales No.: E.73.1.3). 20 /bid., para. 186. 21 /bid., para. 187. 22 /bid., para. 190.

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