Mr. President, may I associate myself with the representatives who have spoken before me in congratulating you most warmly on your unanimous election to the high office of Presidency of the eighteenth session of the General Assembly. I am confident that your devotion to the cause of the United Nations and your comprehensive knowledge of the work of the Organization will contribute significantly to the success of this session.
133. When we last met in this hall a year ago, mankind was faced with a most menacing situation. The United Nations was desperately struggling to end the tragedy of the Congo when crisis in the Caribbean brought the world to the brink of a thermo-nuclear holocaust.
134. Today as the eighteenth session of the General Assembly convenes, this terrifying nightmare not only seems remote, but the opening of new vistas of hope and expectations have brought us nearer than ever to the realization of the ideals enshrined in the Charter.
135. We are well aware of the developments of the greatest significance that have, since our last gathering here, affected the future of world peace. These developments, which we welcome most heartily, have imposed greater responsibilities upon the United Nations and have imparted a special importance to our present Assembly.
136. The nuclear test-ban treaty, signed on 5 August 1963 in Moscow, has come to be rightly regarded by the peoples of the world as a break-through in the cold war, promising to usher in a new era in international relations.
137. Although the treaty has no direct bearing on the question of disarmament, nor does it prohibit nuclear testing in the underground, these factors will not detract from the value of the agreement reached. The test ban accord signifies the end of an agonizing nine years of relentless efforts to outlaw nuclear experiments. It will discourage the nuclear arms race, impede the proliferation of atomic weapons and will stop further contamination of the earth's atmosphere resulting from massive nuclear tests.
138. Important though this treaty is, we believe still more important is what it portends. We share the opinion that the test ban accord will connote weight and significance much beyond its specific terms. Iran, realizing at once the importance of the treaty, hastened to pledge its immediate support to it.
139. To hear Mr. Kennedy, President of the United States [1209th meeting] and Mr. Gromyko, the Soviet Foreign Minister [1208th meeting], before the Assembly speak of the test ban not as an end in itself but as a prelude to a general "détente" between East and West was reassuring that the quest for peace will continue.
140. Another hopeful development of recent months is the establishment of a direct telephone line between Moscow and Washington as a means of reducing the chances of war by accident.
141. The limited agreement on the peaceful uses of outer space is yet another encouraging trend resulting from the improved relations between East and West. One may reasonably hope that this Assembly will provide a broader basis for international co-operation in this field.
142. It is to be expected that these measures will create that climate of opinion necessary for any reduction of armaments leading to the eventual attainment of the long-desired goal of complete and total disarmament.
143. In any evaluation of the intervening period between the present and the seventeenth session of the Assembly one is bound to take note of the significant improvement in the Congo situation. We read in the introduction to the report of the Secretary General that:
"External military interference in the Congo has ceased, the territorial integrity of the country has been secured, and law and order have generally been restored and are being maintained..." [A/5501/ Add.1, section 1.]
These are significant achievements. We wish the Congolese well in their present preoccupation with the task of laying down the foundations of a viable and prosperous Congo.
144. What has been achieved in the Congo is in no small measure due to the dedication and to the vision of the Secretary-General. U Thant was given the helm of the United Nations Operation in the Congo at a critical stage. Yet he was able to steer it to a successful conclusion.
145. Iran is happy to have a part to play in this undertaking. Aside from our financial contributions, we responded readily to the call of the United Nations Command by putting at its disposal military units and personnel for the purpose of carrying out the tasks of unification.
146. The Congo operation, however, has created serious complications. The unwillingness to meet the financial obligations resulting from the peace-keeping operations of the United Nations has had much to do with the concept Member Governments entertain of the United Nations. Should it be merely a debating society to be used exclusively for fulfilment of national objectives, or should it be an organization able to right the wrong and to uphold law and order? It is to be hoped that the response of the Assembly to this pressing question would be such as to enable the Organization to function as a dynamic instrument for peace.
147. There is at present an increasing tendency to turn to the United Nations as mediator, peace-maker and guarantor of treaties. This wide interest in and the total need for the United Nations makes it an urgent matter not only to solve the present financial crisis of the Organization, but to devise ways and means of developing its peace-keeping machinery on a well- arranged and permanent basis. I am thinking mainly in terms of the idea expounded by the Prime Minister of Canada, Mr. Pearson, in the course of his constructive statement before the Assembly on 19 September 1963 [1208th meeting]. In the light of the approaching twentieth anniversary of the United Nations, it is, I believe, high time to think seriously in regard to the establishment of a permanent international police force. In this respect, I pledge my country's co-operation.
148. The settlement of the question of West Irian, for which the groundwork was laid in the course of the past year, was carried to a successful conclusion in May, 1963, This operation can be considered as another triumph for the concept of amicable settlement of disputes and indeed may well be regarded in the annals of international co-operation as a first attempt to establish what I venture to call a supra-national government.
149. Iran gladly played a part in this undertaking, by placing at the disposal of the United Nations one of its notable diplomats, Mr. Abdah, who, as the United Nations Chief Administrator, won the praise of the Secretary-General and the parties concerned.
150. In the same context, and in line with the interest which we showed in the future of Rwanda and Burundi in their preparation for independence, I may refer to the assistance given by Iran to the Government of Burundi by aiding it in the training of its military cadre. We are gratified that our modest contributions have been appreciated by the appropriate authorities.
151. Turning now to the problems arising from the disintegration of the colonial system, it is regrettable that, notwithstanding the inevitable and irreversible trend of history in the liberation of the former colonial peoples of Africa —a trend which bears the unanimous support of the democratic nations of the world— there should still exist certain countries which, disregarding world public opinion, attempt desperately to hinder the tide of freedom and seek to oppose the legitimate aspirations of colonial peoples. The policy of the Government of Portugal with regard to its possessions in Africa is one such instance. It is our sincere desire that the Government of Portugal will not delay in responding to the expressions of world opinion, and that it will follow the pattern so wisely and successfully adopted by such former great colonial Powers as the United Kingdom and France.
152. History is proving in an increasingly convincing manner that it is only through intelligent understanding of the nature of colonial problems that it is possible to combine an enlightened concept of self-interest with that of the legitimate aspirations of colonial peoples for freedom and independence. The world at large is impatient for the commencement of the long awaited negotiations between Portugal and the true representatives of its African possessions before further violence and bloodshed have removed all possibilities of achieving a just and peaceful settlement of this problem.
153. Similarly, the Government and the people of Iran deeply regret the defiant attitude of the Union of South Africa to the numerous resolutions and recommendations of the General Assembly concerning the inhuman policy of apartheid and the problem of the mandated territory of South West Africa.
154. In these and in other colonial issues, Iran, as a member of the Special Committee of Twenty-Four, will not fail to pursue its unwavering policy of support for the cause of emancipation and freedom of all peoples from colonial and neo-colonial rule.
155. I wish now, with your permission, Sir, to refer to certain current developments in Iran. In so doing, it is not my intention merely to impress upon the Assembly our recent achievements on the national scene, but to underline how my Government's policy has tried to keep in line with the main trends of thought and action as expressed by the various United Nations proposals, declarations and covenants regarding social and economic welfare and political status of peoples in general. I have in mind also the recommendations embodied in the Secretary-General's proposals for the United Nations Development Decade.
156. The fundamental changes that are now peacefully taking place in Iran, transforming the very foundations of our society and the whole pattern of life throughout the country, are changes that, in the history of some other nations, have been nothing less than a revolution, invariably accompanied by upheaval and bloodshed. Indeed, these deep-rooted social, political and economic changes were carried out under the Shahanshah's Six- Point Programme, a programme approved wholeheartedly by the overwhelming majority of the nation, and have come rightly to be known as the "revolution of the Shah and the people".
157. Years of trial and error and the development of both thought and experience have brought us to the conclusion that institutional and structural changes are the very prerequisites of any programme of economic progress designed to keep us abreast of the advance nations of the world.
158. The philosophy of these reforms stems from the belief that no real progress can be achieved under a social and economic structure whose dominant characteristic is an extraordinary waste of productive energy, and which keeps out of the process of production a very substantial part of human and natural resources.
159. We have come to believe, therefore, that the key to the basic problem of breaking the familiar and dreaded vicious circle of poverty and under-development could not be found in conventional reforms within the old structure, but in striking deep at the roots of the problem; by breaking once and for all the semi-feudal structure; by releasing the huge reservoir of potential human energy and natural resources; and by employing them fully in the process of development.
160. The salient features of these revolutionary changes embodied in the Six Point Programme consist of land reform, the creation of the army of knowledge and the institution of a scheme by which the majority of the workers of our nation will share in the net profits of the industries in which they work.
161. The land reform law, by striking at the root of the archaic and unjust relationship between the landlord and the peasant, and by limiting the acreage owned by the landowner, has granted to about 15 million Iranians legitimate ownership of the land upon which they have toiled for centuries. Thus, in about a year's time, no less than two-thirds of our entire population has been emancipated from the bonds of virtual serfdom.
162. The law covering the army of knowledge, providing for the employment of the services of literate conscripts, has given momentum to the pace of our campaign against illiteracy and has facilitated the implementation of compulsory national education. Under this scheme, secondary school graduates, instead of military service and attending to their duties in barracks, are given the responsibility of a school teacher and sent to the rural areas to fight illiteracy, thus providing free primary education in distant parts of the country.
163. The law which provides the workers with a 20 per cent share in the net profits of industrial concerns is a unique departure from tradition, ensuring for our working population a more equitable distribution of the national income.
164. But these revolutionary changes would have been incomplete had the traditional barriers that have barred Iranian women from participation in the social and political life of our nation been ignored. The Shahanshah's decision to bestow franchise and equal rights on Iranian women —a step unparalleled in the twenty-five centuries of our written history and courageously taken against powerful opposition— has remedied the evil and granted to one half of our population their basic freedoms.
165. Such are the fundamental changes which are at present under way in Iran, and which history may well record as a people's supreme and determined endeavour for the realization of a better life.
166. As regards economic planning and execution, we are now entering into a more active stage, and my Government has welcomed the response shown by international institutions for financial assistance.
167. My Government is appreciative of the contribution of the United Nations to the economic progress of the developing countries. We value the advisory services provided by the Technical Assistance Programmes and welcome the pre-investment activities undertaken by the Special Fund in Iran.
168. With regard to our policy with neighbouring countries, we have been persistent in abiding by the principles of the Charter and in maintaining friendly relations with all our neighbours.
169. We are happy that, after a year and a half of negotiation, my Sovereign's personal efforts and good offices were instrumental in restoring normal diplomatic relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, our two neighbouring sister States. We are confident that their future association will serve as a factor of great value in preserving the stability and peace of our region.
170. A new chapter in our relations with the Soviet Union, based on a spirit of goodwill, equality and mutual respect, has been inaugurated in the course of the last year. This new development, which our two countries have wholeheartedly welcomed, and which will be implemented without prejudice to our other international commitments, is already bearing promising fruit in the form of joint participation in, and equal benefit from, the implementation of bilateral economic projects. We are confident that this new spirit of friendship in our relations will prove to be a source of greater stability in our part of the world.
171. In concluding my remarks, may I remind my fellow representatives that, in two years' time, our Organization will be observing the twentieth anniversary of its foundation.
172. This world Organization, born some eighteen years ago, ironically under the trail of the mushrooming cloud of Hiroshima, and embodying humanity's hopes for world peace, has not only survived the gloomy prognostications of many, but, in facing some of the most dangerous crises of its growth, has exhibited signs of exceptional vitality. Although the very nature of its structure forced the Organization to remain, in some ways, a reflection of a torn and divided world, it did help the existing opposing forces to interact upon each other, not to the detriment of peace, but in the constructive spirit of the Charter.
173. Even if the United Nations were only to be credited for the part it has played in the emancipation of millions of the former colonial peoples, or for instilling, by daily and persistent action, the idea of peace in the minds of men, it should be congratulated for such a worthy accomplishment.
174. And so, with the improvement in the atmosphere of international relations, one wonders whether the time is not ripe for a still greater effort that could make the forthcoming twentieth anniversary of our Organization a date of special significance in the history of mankind.
175. We believe that present developments justify, and indeed demand, such an effort on the part of us all in order to pave the way within the next two years for the beginning of an era not merely of coexistence, but of genuine international co-operation and lasting friendship. We are convinced that, if such endeavours are undertaken with the necessary depth of vision and a true sense of responsibility towards the many millions of peoples whom we are representing here, no barriers would be insurmountable, nor any obstacles insuperable in our quest for implementing the ideals of the Charter and resolving all our pending problems, including that of complete and general disarmament,
176. I wish to express the hope that such a spirit will prevail over the deliberations of this eighteenth session of the General Assembly. I extend the assurance also that my delegation would not fail to lend full co-operation to any endeavour designed to achieve such worthy objectives.