21. Mr. President, permit me to associate myself with all the speakers who have preceded me at this rostrum in extending to you, on behalf of the Togolese delegation and on my own behalf, my sincere and warm congratulations on your election to the high office of President of the nineteenth session of the General Assembly,
22. My congratulations are all the more heartfelt in that you are a Ghanaian and I a Togolese, that is to say, in that we are brothers and neighbours. There can be no doubt that your qualities of heart and mind, your genuine courtesy and your lofty concepts of a united and prosperous Africa were factors that determined the choice of the African Group. But, as you yourself stressed with such modesty, in the eyes of the Assembly this is not an honour bestowed upon you alone but on Africa as a whole and on the millions of persons of African descent who have been dispersed throughout the world by the vicissitudes of history.
23. This is truly an enhancement of the status of Africa; it is an indication of the recognition and consecration of the newly-regained dignity of the black man, the African Negro.
24. It is scarcely necessary for me to say how happy and proud I am to see, as everyone does, that the skilful manner in which you perform your very delicate task serves to demonstrate to the world the inanity of racial prejudice.
25. 1 believe that your tact and dedication in dealing with all the problems concerning Africa will help to make the United Nations, by the end of this nineteenth session, which began under the shadow of doubt and discouragement, ever more vigorous and confident in its future.
26. In this connexion, I make an appeal, on behalf of the Togolese delegation, to the two great Powers whose temporary disagreement prevents the Assembly from carrying out its work normally and uselessly detains delegates in New York, thereby entailing very heavy expenses for the African countries.
27. The two great Powers will be truly great only to the extent that they are able to rise above those quarrels of principle and think less of their national prestige and more of the humiliation inflicted on the small Powers as a result of their disagreement.
28. I am more than ever convinced that no one would ever accept the terrible responsibility of causing the collapse of an Organization which was born of tears and bloodshed, i.e. amid desolation, but which was built in order to bring about agreement and harmony among States and to promote peace and universal brotherhood through the exchange of ideas.
29. Moreover, since nations are composed of men, the Organization concerns itself with man as the essential element of mankind by waging a struggle against hunger, disease, and ignorance.
30. The United Nations thus appears to be the last hope of mankind in this century of confusion and incoherence, of imperialism in its many forms, and of hypocrisy. Indeed, can anyone kill hope without bringing about his own destruction?
31. It is not my intention, at this stage in the Assembly's work, to discuss the major problems which confront the world and which call for solution by the United Nations.
32. My Government's policy remains unchanged. It is based upon three fundamental principles which enable my Government to adopt a clear and logical approach in its international relations.
33. The fact that we are a small country, that we are under-developed and that we love peace makes it necessary for us to follow a policy of friendship towards all States, without exception, whether they be of the East or of the West.
34. My country is in any case always prepared to vote in favour of the admission to our Organization of all free and independent States, regardless of their political system, since, after all, the aim of the United Nations is to achieve universality. It is therefore our confident expectation that our brothers who are still suffering under the colonial yoke will soon take their place in the international community.
35. The second principle flows quite naturally from the first. My Government does not and will not interfere in the internal affairs of any State. Similarly, it will oppose, by all the means at its disposal, any foreign interference, from whatever quarter, in its own internal affairs.
36. Its policy of friendship is directed towards States and not men. Adopting the old adage that every country has the government which it deserves, my country will refuse to support any initiative, from whatever source, which it regards as interference in the internal affairs of another State.
37. Such an attitude, moreover, is fully in Conformity with one of the fundamental principles of the Charter of the Organization of African Unity the essence of which is contained in its article 3.
38. The golden rule followed by my Government is a policy of non-interference in the affairs of States and a policy of friendship towards all States.
39. Such a policy, however, does not extend to those nations which have placed themselves beyond the pale of mankind by their vain efforts to keep our African brothers under their yoke. Those countries should remember that the course of history is irreversible.
40. Nor does such a policy extend to States in which part of the population, because it happens to be of a certain colour, has the arrogance to practise segregation and impose serfdom on the other part of the population which, owing to the inscrutable ways of providence, is of a different colour. However, is there really any need for further comment on these anachronistic States?
41. The third principle is derived from the first two and imposes upon the Togolese Government a position of neutrality vis-&-vis the two blocs. Our policy is one of non-alignment and non-interference, but this in no way prevents my delegation from adopting a positive attitude whenever it considers that the cause involved is a just one.
42. Finally, Togo, which until yesterday was still a ward of the United Nations and is today a free and independent State deeply committed to the noble ideals of peace and brotherhood among nations, is happy to be part of the irresistible forward movement in which men of ever-increasing similarity are joining, for at the end of the road the unity to be found through universal love is already in sight.