Yugoslavia

Allow me, Mr, President, to extend to you, on behalf of the Yugoslav delegation and myself, our sincere congratulations on your unanimous election to the responsible office of President of the General Assembly. We are confident that the eighteenth session of the General Assembly, over which you will preside, will yield fruitful and constructive results in the preservation of world peace and the promotion of international co-operation. 178. This year the session of the General Assembly is meeting under conditions which give it a particular significance, which open up new prospects, but which, at the same time, impose a heavy responsibility upon us all. We are called upon to make the fullest possible contribution to the further positive development of international relations, a contribution which the peoples of the world have a right to expect of our Organization. 179. Despite the existence of a considerable number of unsettled problems, we have reason to look more hopefully to the future. For, after the extremely perilous moments mankind went through last autumn in connexion with the Caribbean crisis, international relations began to show signs of improvement, opening the way to a more flexible and more realistic approach to some of the world's major issues. This approach found practical expression in the conclusion of the Moscow Agreement of 5 August 1963 on the banning of nuclear tests in the atmosphere, in outer space and under water. We warmly welcomed the Agreement as making possible further concrete steps towards general and complete disarmament. By entering into this Agreement, the great Powers have assumed the obligation to make the preservation of peace and the seeking of agreements their main concern in the future and to be guided thereby in their foreign policy. 180. We welcome the assurances given to that effect both at the time of the signing of the Moscow Agreement and at the present session. 181. We are sincerely gratified to see East-West relations develop in a more satisfactory manner and the appearance of broader prospects for a "détente" in international relations and for disarmament. We have always supported such a course. We therefore view the present turn for the better in international relations as our own success as well as a general achievement, as the vindication of a policy we have constantly pursued. We have always urged the method of negotiation and the policy of coexistence in word and deed as the only realistic policy, the only realistic way out of the impasse into which the cold war and the arms race have led the world. 182. This positive trend in international relations has resulted from the fact that both sides have reached the conviction that war is not inevitable. It stems from a growing awareness of the need to accept the world as it is, in progressive movement, and not as some would wish it to be. It also comes from what would seem to be a general consensus that responsible Governments are pursuing in practice, and in a realistic spirit, a policy of peaceful coexistence. 183. The entire peace-loving world will welcome the growing sense of responsibility displayed by the leaders of the great powers and reflected also in their determination to remain constantly in contact for the purpose of exchanging views and seeking solutions to international problems. As always in the past, we shall readily support every further initiative contributing towards the easing of international tensions and the solution of controversial issues. The changes for the better in international relations are the result of a long, persevering and consistent struggle of the peace-loving forces in the world and of their increasingly powerful impact. An extremely important role is played by the newly independent and the developing countries, which, as President Tito recently remarked, "by the nature of their position and their interests are on the side of, and are waging a struggle for, peace and a policy of peaceful coexistence". International relations are now taking, we feel, the course charted in Bandung, in Belgrade and in Cairo, and so powerfully stated at the conference of Heads of African States and Governments at Addis Ababa in May 1963, In its Charter and other documents, the Addis Ababa Conference reaffirmed Africa’s role in the world today. It also emphasized a common acceptance of the policy of non-alignment and of the need for a growing activity on the part of African countries in the struggle for the strengthening of peace and for the triumph of the policy of peaceful coexistence. The Conference bears witness to the changed conditions in the world of today and stresses the imperative need for non-African countries to develop their relations with the new Africa with a proper understanding for its problems and aspirations. 184. The ever more fruitful activity of our Organization in all spheres of international life has greatly contributed to these propitious trends, which are, of course, fully in accord with the purposes and principles of the Charter. In saying this, I also have in mind the many useful Initiatives of our distinguished Secretary-General. 185. My country wholeheartedly welcomes and supports all these new and favourable trends in international relations and in the solving of international problems. 186. The atomic age —and there should no longer be any doubt in this regard— calls for a change of the very foundations on which international relations have hitherto rested. Owing to this, many countries, regardless of their differences, develop similar or even identical views on major international problems. This confirms the fact that peace and prosperity among nations are indivisible. It also offers proof of the common aspirations of mankind. 187. We cannot, however, rest content merely with noting that there is progress in the world. If there is a growing acceptance of the fact that, in present conditions, war has lost all meaning, if the atomic age inevitably transforms our views on social and international relations, then it is clearly imperative to strive towards an early agreement on general and complete disarmament; to ensure the settlement of all disputes by negotiation; to do away with colonialism in all its aspects; to ensure respect for the Independence and the free, unfettered development of all countries and peoples and to render possible a speedy solution of the world's major economic and social problems. 188. Such, in our opinion, are the practical ways whereby, and conditions wherein, enduring peace and progress for all can be secured. Guided by the basic principles of Its policies, the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia has always taken and will continue to take an affirmative and most resolute attitude with regard to these demands. 189. We are, of course, under no illusion that matters will henceforth go well of themselves, that all obstacles have been removed, that all difficulties have been overcome and that all the negative factors have ceased to operate. On the contrary, these negative factors still make themselves only too clearly felt. There is still outright opposition to the present favourable trends. There is still too much distortion and misinterpretation, or else incomprehension, of their meaning and of their goals, too many attempts to deprive them of their substance. There are too many remnants of former attitudes and influences. Hotbeds of conflict and sources of tension have not yet been removed, nor have elements of force and pressure been done away with. It is therefore essential to isolate and render powerless the forces opposing the present favourable trends, the proponents of the cold war and of the policy of force, wherever they may be and regardless of the guise or pretext under which they may be advocating this policy. 190. All this stresses the need for yet more resolute efforts to ensure that the present course not only continues, but gains in scope and depth, so as to cover widening areas of international relations and lead to the inclusion of a growing number of countries —all those countries and those forces that are able and willing to help along such a course. We are all expected to act here and now, where we are represented on an equal footing and where we all have the possibility and the responsibility to act. We have neither the reason, nor do we have the right, to stand aloof from a course which we have done so much to initiate. Nor should we, under the pretext of not interfering, let events run their own course. Things will move satisfactorily only if we all do our utmost and work in the same direction. What is expected of us is not only to give our resolute and constructive support to present positive trends, but to indicate the lines along which the process should evolve. Thus, by finding solutions to the numerous political, economic, social and other problems confronting the world community today —many of which are on our agenda— we would establish the prerequisites for a lasting peace based on freedom, independence and the equality of all peoples and countries. 191. It has become essential today to put an end to the senseless and highly perilous arms race which consumes such tremendous financial resources of the highly developed countries. Put to more useful ends, these resources, at the present high level of science and technology, could make it possible for humanity rapidly to attain well-being and prosperity. There can neither be a durable peace, nor can the world be rid of the threat of force so long as international relations repose on arms and fear. The utmost efforts are, therefore, called for in order gradually to establish conditions for general and complete disarmament. 192. After so many years of fruitless discussions, tangible progress has at last been achieved in the field of disarmament. An agreement has been reached on the partial banning of nuclear tests. This agreement, despite its limitations which have been sufficiently emphasized and which, moreover, no one denies, is a step, the first step, in the field of disarmament. It not only frees mankind from the harmful effects of atomic radiation, both present and future, but also curbs the nuclear race to some extent at least and in some of its aspects. We look upon the Moscow Agreement as the initial stage of a process which, along with the solution of other international problems, will gradually embrace more and more concrete and substantial disarmament measures and lead to the basic objective: general and complete disarmament. It is as part of such a process and in the light of its further prospects that the Moscow Agreement acquires its full meaning. 193. We consider that, in order to create a climate of confidence and to improve internationalrelations.it is possible, and indeed necessary, to undertake a whole range of other measures which would lessen tensions and remove the danger of war, while at the same time making possible further steps in the broad and complex field of disarmament. 194. It is only natural, of course, to begin with those measures which now appear most feasible and with regard to which a greater readiness on the part of those concerned is most immediately apparent. It is essential, however, not to stop there, but to ensure that the process should continue uninterruptedly, with due regard, of course, to what is realistic, useful and possible. However, it should also be borne in mind that realism in this context is a dynamic and not a static category. That which seems unrealistic today may well become attainable —and even seem modest— at subsequent stages of the process. For by then —and owing largely to the disarmament measures which, we trust, will be undertaken by that time— the conditions for other, more substantial, measures will have matured. The disarmament measures which come into consideration here are generally well known. They have been discussed in the Eighteen-Nation Committee on Disarmament in Geneva and in connexion with the Moscow Agreement, and also here in the general debate. As far as we are concerned, we do not cherish any hard and fast predilections and would be even less inclined to recommend a rigid system of priorities. 195. It is essential, in our view, to move forward steadily in establishing and strengthening the necessary confidence and towards general and complete disarmament. The Moscow Agreement should be universally adopted. It should be made complete by the inclusion of an underground test ban, a ban as essential and urgent as it is objectively feasible. Measures should be taken to curb the nuclear arms race on what might be termed a "horizontal plane". In other words, steps should be taken to prevent the dissemination of nuclear weapons and to establish denuclearized zones. This does not, of course, imply the preservation of a nuclear monopoly, but, on the contrary, tends to create conditions for its abolition. These measures, as we understand them, are not only, and not primarily, designed to prevent the spread of atomic weapons to areas where there are none as yet —although this is, of course, of the greatest importance in the present circumstances. They are also intended to narrow the area where there are already such weapons, with a view to their total elimination. The two aspects of this problem are not mutually exclusive but, rather, complementary. It is for this reason that Yugoslavia firmly supports both the proposals for the establishment of atom-free zones in Africa and in Latin America and the demands for the "denuclearization" of certain particularly sensitive areas in Europe, more especially in Central Europe. The "denuclearization" of that part of Europe, combined with disengagement, could contribute substantially towards political solutions, the absence of which makes any genuine normalization in this area impossible. Nor is that all. Alongside or following upon this "horizontal denuclearization" —which would in itself be of the utmost significance for the consolidation of peace— a, "vertical denuclearization" should be sought. This would cover both the production and the stockpiling of nuclear arms, as well as of the delivery vehicles. "Denuclearization", as we envisage it, would therefore be a single and comprehensive process. It would in Itself be part of the over-all process of disarmament. It would lead to the "denuclearization" of the nuclear Powers themselves. 196. Measures tending towards a reduction of military budgets, of conventional armaments and armed forces seem to us to be entirely appropriate and realistic. There are, obviously, other concrete and even more substantial measures whose adoption should have the Assembly's fully support. Such measures should also lead to the drastic reduction and subsequent elimination of nuclear weapons delivery vehicles, to the cessation of the production of nuclear weapons, to the reduction of their stockpiles and the elimination of the weapons themselves; to various measures in the field of conventional armaments, and so on. They should include measures to prevent the extension of the arms race to outer space. In supporting such measures, the Assembly would be supporting the general process of which they are a part and a motivating force and which should lead to general and complete disarmament. We have a right to expect that the Eighteen-Nation Committee on Disarmament will now, in the improved atmosphere since the conclusion of the Moscow Agreement, and along the lines of our conclusions here, deal more successfully with these and other measures and the disarmament problem as a whole. 197. This session should also contribute towards the solution of various problems relating to the use of outer space for peaceful purposes. We have noted with satisfaction the results obtained thus far and the immediate prospects in the domain of scientific and technical cooperation in the peaceful use of outer space. This kind of co-operation should, we feel, be extended to other scientific activities as well. However, it must be noted that the present atmosphere has not been reflected in the negotiations on the legal norms which are to govern the various aspects of the use of outer space for peaceful purposes, In view both of the large measure of agreement regarding the substance of such norms and the need to adopt them as soon as possible, the General Assembly should, we believe, play a more active role in the efforts to reach adequate solutions. 198. Before turning to other problems, I must stress once again that, as we bend our efforts towards the solution of the disarmament problem, we should also persevere in seeking and undertaking measures designed gradually to eliminate potential sources of conflict and to prevent the emergence of new ones. In this light, the efforts to realize the idea of a non-aggression pact between the members of NATO and the signatories of the Treaty of Warsaw (Warsaw Treaty) and other similar initiatives, should be welcomed and supported. 199. The importance in the present situation of the problem of disarmament and of the whole complex of relations between the nuclear Powers in no way lessens, but may even be said to enhance, the significance of the other major problems on our agenda. I am referring here above all to the problem of colonialism and to that of economic development. 200. The endeavours to find solutions to those problems are an integral part of the general struggle to preserve and strengthen the peace. The relaxation of world tension makes the solution of these problems easier. On the other hand, positive solutions of these problems have a favourable impact on the broader field of international relations. 201. Problems against others, to make their solution contingent upon the solution of other "more important" problems or to neglect the former "to the advantage" of the latter, would lead us nowhere. It would obstruct progress in either group of problems and certainly would not contribute to the successful struggle for peace and international co-operation on a basis of equality. 202. The problem of the immediate eradication of the remnants of colonialism in Africa and elsewhere is one which directly affects international peace and security. It is therefore only natural that it should be dealt with as such by the General Assembly and the Security Council. Consequently, the present session of the General Assembly has to deal with the colonial issue with determination and solely from the standpoint of its immediate and total elimination. Unless it does so, the Assembly will not be living up to the expectations of the millions of people who are still living under colonial domination. 203. The situation in the territories under Portuguese domination, which has recently been considered by the Security Council, is a glaring example of how untenable and dangerous this long-obsolete system has become. The case of Southern Rhodesia, where several million inhabitants have been abandoned to the mercy of the white minority, is no less fraught with danger, even though its immediate repercussions may not be as readily apparent. 204. The opposition of the colonial Powers to the legitimate aspirations of the peoples in the remaining colonies and the odious policy of apartheid in the Republic of South Africa run against the course of history and are a challenge to the conscience of mankind. They are a gross violation of the United Nations Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Declaration on the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples. They are also a direct and infinitely dangerous threat to international peace and security. Energetic action by our Organization has therefore become imperative. Such action, needless to say, will have the full and firm support of the Yugoslav delegation. 205. We are also of the opinion that as part of the general efforts to liquidate relationships which stemmed or still stem from colonialism, the present session should adopt without delay the Declaration on the elimination of racial discrimination everywhere and in all its forms. This Declaration should, in our view, clearly state the obligation of all States to take determined steps towards this end. This should rapidly be followed by the adoption of a convention outlawing such discrimination and investing the moral obligations in the Declaration with binding legal force. 206. The practice of inequality and discrimination in international economic and trade relations is being continued and even intensified. This practice is also the cause of instability in the broader field of international relations. The contradictions of the transitional era are reflected, inter alia, in the fact that parallel with the progress in solving the political problems in the world and the liberation of peoples, there is a disquieting aggravation of the disproportion in the degree of development, in the economic power and in the wealth of certain peoples and countries. This is being most severely felt by the newly independent and the developing countries. In their endeavours to step up their economic and social development and to increase their productive forces, these countries are meeting with a lack of understanding and with difficulties on the part of many highly industrialized countries and of their closed economic organizations. The growth of productive forces in the world is such that the economic relations existing between the developed and the under-developed countries and the creation of closed economic groupings of the highly developed countries are impeding, at an alarming rate, the normal growth of these forces of production. On the one hand, they are widening the gap between the developed and under-developed countries, thus creating sources of international political complications. Such a harmful practice endangers the independence of these countries, opposes nation to nation and thereby undermines the very foundation of the world community and of peace. On the other hand, in a number of developed countries, elements are beginning to accumulate which lead to crises, business recessions and also impede the more rapid growth of productive forces within the countries themselves. 207. It is in the common interest, therefore, to place the problems of the developed and under-developed countries on the agenda as they are crucial problems for the further development of all. 208. The demand for the abolition of inequality and monopoly in world economy and trade follows logically upon the eradication of colonialism and political emancipation in international relations. 209. For these reasons, one of the permanent and essential features of Yugoslavia's foreign policy and international activities is the efforts to speed up the economic development of the developing countries. 210. This explains why we have taken our place among the proponents and initiators of a World Economic Conference on Trade and Development. The idea of such a Conference was put forward at the historic meetings of the non-aligned and the developing countries in Belgrade and Cairo. The purpose of the Conference, which is to be held under United Nations auspices, is to stress the principles of relations of equality in the world economy, to adopt a programme of practical international actions and to undertake the necessary measures and pave the way for new relations in world economic and trade co-operation. 211. Although the advancement of the developing countries is to be the basic task of the Conference, this does not imply that its scope will thereby be exhausted. The Conference would not achieve its purpose if it failed to lay the foundations for such co-operation as would enable all the countries participating in international trade exchanges to find their concrete and practical interest therein. 212. We therefore feel that it is essential for the success of the Conference that agreement should be reached on the basic problems, that the additional points upon which a common programme can be built should be discovered and that this programme should become one of general progress in the world. Eighteen years of the activity of our Organization, of its regional commissions and specialized agencies make it possible clearly to grasp the nature of the problems confronting us now in the economic field. It has also made it possible for us to perceive the essentials of the measures to be undertaken without delay in order to solve these problems. 213. We therefore urge that the Conference should adopt a declaration on the principles of international economic co-operation. 214. The developing countries made it clear in their joint statement in the Preparatory Committee of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development that they expect the Conference to provide the opportunity for a demonstration in the field of trade and development of that political determination which led to the adoption of the United Nations Charter in San Francisco and to the creation of the United Nations. The Conference should make practical decisions providing for basic solutions and initiating a process of more effective international co-operation. These should be designed, inter alia, to remove obstacles to exports from the developing countries to the markets of the industrial countries, to stabilize their primary commodity exchanges, to promote their industrial exports and to increase the international financing of development. The Conference should, in our view, establish such international machinery as could ensure the implementation of its decisions. 215. At the same time the Conference should set up machinery which will stimulate, through the setting up of appropriate international funds, economic and trade exchanges under general conditions of equality. This should be a mechanism for consultation and mutual contacts on the basis of voluntary co-operation. The Conference should also examine the question of the establishment of assistance funds to be formed out of contributions proportionate to national income and out of savings from the freezing of military budgets and from disarmament. 216. Under such conditions of international trade and economic co-operation the need arises and a broad possibility appears for the further growth and increased activity of the United Nations system. Although it is clear to all that the United Nations must become more active in the economic field, there are still differences among us concerning the concrete organizational and institutional forms for co-operation. The Conference will, we hope, provide an opportunity for the detailed consideration of the functions of existing organizations and of the organizational structure of the United Nations in the field of economic co-operation. This certainly applies both to the problems of industrialization where the need to establish a new organization is obvious, and to those of science and technology. The Conference should, we feel, also examine both the substantive and institutional aspects of the problem of international financing and lay down criteria which would ensure the economically sound and efficient lending policy. The removal of the obstacles to trade will fully achieve the desired results if production is increased. Production, however, can be increased only by a growing mobilization of both national and international investments. The experience of the last decade has shown that every dollar in international financing makes it possible to mobilize approximately four dollars of domestic investments in the developing countries. However, to every one hundred dollars of the national income of the industrial countries, ten dollars are still being expended on armaments and less than one dollar for the economic development of the underdeveloped areas. The time has come, in my opinion, for the Assembly as well as for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to re-examine, in the light of new developments, the question of launching of operations of the United Nations Capital Development Fund, or for the existing Special Fund to grow, naturally with increased means, into the fund for investment financing. 217. Since only a few months separate us from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, this session of the General Assembly should, in our opinion, make a major contribution to the general and practical planning of the forthcoming Conference. 218. Changes, which are the reflection of general developments in the world have taken place within our Organization. The influx of new Members from the ranks of the newly-liberated countries and the growing influence of the progressive and peace-loving forces make our Organization increasingly capable of assuming a still greater role as an instrument of peace, cooperation and security. It is in this light that we view the question of adapting the structure of the United Nations to world changes and to the requirements arising from these changes for the purpose of making it more fully and more completely democratic. We are convinced that the time has come for practical steps to expand the principal organs of the United Nations and we shall support all such steps. 219. In conclusion, it is our profound conviction that the United Nations can at present make an even greater contribution to efforts to strengthen international confidence and facilitate and promote efforts towards agreement. The overwhelming majority of peoples and countries have declared themselves in favour of the policy and of the principles of peaceful coexistence. The United Nations should continue to reaffirm this policy and to sanction the principles of coexistence as binding norms among States and nations. This would greatly contribute to the effectiveness of the United Nations in its peace-making role. It would, at the same time, constitute an important achievement in the life of the world community.