Mr. President, the Secretary of State, Mr. Dulles, has asked me to express to you his deep regret that he could not be here to deliver this message himself. May I also convey Mr. Dulles’ congratulations to you, our distinguished friend from Thailand, as the new President of the Assembly.
69. The General Assembly meets at a time when the world community is beset with many problems. Some of them are of the greatest gravity. In a short space of weeks we have been confronted with two challenges to world peace.
70. The United Nations has played a vigorous role in the critical events of the past few weeks in Europe and in the Near East. It has responded rapidly to focus world attention on the issues involved. It made just and practical proposals for peaceful solutions. The world cannot but heed the moral force for peace that it has demonstrated during recent weeks. The United Nations has shown its dedication to the principles of its Charter and its ability to move swiftly to the defence of those principles.
71. As the President of the United States, Mr. Eisenhower said in his address to the people of the United States on 31 October 1956: “As I review the march of world events in recent years, I am more deeply convinced that the processes of the United Nations represent the soundest base for peace in the world.” The basic purpose of. the Charter is peace with justice. The United States is convinced that the United Nations is the best instrument for achieving this end. Peace alone is not enough, for without justice, peace is illusory and temporary. On the other hand, without peace, justice would be submerged by the limitless injustices of war.
72. In the past few weeks the United Nations has acted promptly to preserve peace with justice. But its efforts cannot be judged merely by its resolutions. The test is compliance with its resolutions.
73. In Eastern Europe, the United Nations actions to deal with the tragic situation in Hungary are still unheeded. Soviet forces have not been withdrawn. We now hear shocking reports that the barbarism of mass deportation is being inflicted on the Hungarian people. We cannot remain silent while Hungarian men, women and children are forcibly deported because they dared to express their patriotic feelings in defiance of their Soviet oppressors. That is why the United States believes that the Assembly must take an immediate initiative to meet this tragic situation. This matter requires the urgent attention of the Assembly. The United States will support such changes in the Assembly’s schedule as may be necessary to permit this vital matter to be considered as a matter of priority.
74. The Secretary-General’s request for the admission of United Nations observers into Hungary has been rejected. This means that we must redouble our support of his efforts. At the same time, we must give urgent consideration to the next steps the United Nations can take. The brutal suppression of freedom by alien domination will leave an indelible mark on the conscience of the world.
75. In the Middle East, we welcome the statements of co-operation which have been made in response to the call of the United Nations to cease military operations, to withdraw armed forces and to implement the United Nations Emergency Force.
76. There have, however, been suggestions of introducing so-called “volunteers” into the Near East. Such action would be clearly contrary to General Assembly resolution 997 (ES-I), adopted on 2 November, which was supported by sixty-four Members. It is the clear duty of all, including those who engaged in hostilities, to refrain from introducing forces into the area of the recent hostilities, other than those of the United Nations Emergency Force.
77. Certainly, no State should compound the difficulties of the United Nations in restoring the peace. Introduction of external forces into the area of hostilities would clearly hamper the efforts that are now being made, and in fact would be a threat to the United Nations forces now entering this area. The United Nations would be obligated to take appropriate action. President Eisenhower has announced that the United States would fully support such action.
78. When the United States introduced its "cease-fire” draft resolution [A/3256] on 1 November, Secretary Dulles, speaking here at the 564th meeting, said that a mere cease-fire and a return to the prior state of affairs would not be good enough. He pointed out that the violence had arisen from a highly disturbed and in many respects provocative situation, both in relation to the Suez Canal and the Palestine armistice. He emphasized that unless we could do better than go back to the old and troubled state of affairs, neither peace nor justice could be assured.
79. The United Nations demonstrated its capacity to rally world sentiment against the use of force. It is much harder to rally the same amount of sentiment in favour of remedying the injustices which breed the resort to force. Yet, unless we can get at the fundamental causes of these frictions, we can only make limited progress towards solving the problems of a lasting peace.
80. For this reason, the United States, on 3 November, submitted to the first emergency special session two draft resolutions designed to come to grips with the causes of unrest in the Middle East. The first [A/3273] has to do with the Suez Canal. In 13 October the Security Council adopted a resolution [S/3675] containing six governing principles designed to furnish a framework for a solution that will assure both international confidence and effective operation. Nothing has happened to change the basic proposition that, with due respect for the sovereignty of Egypt, the users of the Canal must be given the assurance of free and indiscriminatory passage under reliable and predictable conditions, insulated from the politics of any country.
81. What is now needed is to give effect to these fundamental principles. We therefore proposed the draft resolution which would establish a committee to work out measures to reopen the Canal; to prepare a plan, in consultation with the countries concerned, for its operation and maintenance; and to assure free passage through it in accordance with the 1888 Convention. We believe the committee should be established promptly and begin its work as soon as possible.
82. The United States also submitted a draft resolution which would provide for the establishment of a committee to consult with the parties to the General Armistice Agreements and to make recommendations regarding a settlement of the major problems outstanding between the Arab States and Israel [Af3272],
83. We have acted promptly to deal with the emergency created by the outbreak of hostilities, The arrival of the first contingents of the United Nations Emergency Force should now make it possible to implement without delay the remaining recommendations of this Assembly, particularly those relating to the withdrawal of forces.
84. We must now act with equal promptness and unity to facilitate a settlement of the problems which gave rise to this emergency. New efforts are also needed to resolve the economic and social problems in that area. The crisis there has diverted our efforts from the tasks of building for the future. There are many things that can be done to help the peoples of that troubled region, towards the standard of economic and social life to which they so deeply aspire. We do not have to wait for the ultimate settlements. Indeed, we would be mistaken to wait. Co-operation on such problems as water, irrigation and trade, and on well-planned development and modernization programmes, can all help to build the foundations for peace. We have a chance for a fresh start. Our aim should be to establish the foundation of a durable peace and stability in the area.
85. In August 1955 Secretary Dulles described some of the things which would be needed. He mentioned several specific things that could be done. He said: “If doing that involves some burdens, they are burdens which the United States would share.” Today, I can here reaffirm the willingness of the United States to do its full share in support of a sound programme.
86. I should also like to speak briefly on two of the other items which will come before this session of the Assembly.
87. The first of these is the International Atomic Energy Agency. We can be heartened that the Statute of the International Atomic Energy Agency, signed in this hall on 26 October 1956 by over seventy nations, has reached the stage of ratification. This has been a major advance for the international community, which has been accomplished by a process of discussion and negotiation. It brings closer the day when the atom can be put to work as a truly international servant of humanity. The United States believes that a committee of the Assembly should negotiate with the new Agency a draft agreement bringing it into appropriate relationship with the United Nations.
88. Secondly, the problem of disarmament will come before the General Assembly when the Disarmament Commission submits its progress report. Prevention of nuclear warfare is the concern of every nation and every human being. Yet the production of nuclear weapons continues, and the terrible threat of nuclear warfare still hangs over mankind. The failure to reach agreement is not a failure directly chargeable to the United Nations. Neither is this failure any reason to give up hope or to slacken our efforts. We must seek to make progress on any front we can. The United States will continue to seize every opportunity for reaching a genuine accord. But we must not be trapped into confusing tempting promises with genuine proposals. The core of the problem continues to be the question of establishing an effective inspection and control mechanism. Any disarmament plan is unsatisfactory unless it is accompanied by means of verifying that the parties are in fact living up to their promises. The Soviet Union, so far, has avoided committing itself to an effective programme of inspection and control. The United States has agreed to such a system. Those States that possess the potential for nuclear warfare have the heavy responsibility of bringing this threat to an end within the authority of the United Nations. The United States here rededicates itself to that great task.
89. The tasks that lie ahead of the United Nations are momentous. In seeking peace with justice, it must find means of providing for peaceful change. The United Nations must assist legitimate changes to take place; but it must also strive to prevent these changes from shattering the peace or from harming the legitimate interests of others. The increasing interdependence of nations is as much a fact of international existence as is the pressure for change. It is the task of statesmanship to guide change into channels which are both peaceful and just.
90. In striving to reconcile conflicting claims and interests, we may sometimes have to make progress slowly. In some cases we may have to adopt partial or temporary solutions. We should not become discouraged when, for the time being, the best we can achieve is a truce or an armistice. We must look at our problems with a sense of the possible and a determination to find it.
91. The United Nations faces the challenge of these tasks with growing strength and vigour. The recent admission of nineteen new Members has given our Organization new vitality and scope. I particularly welcome the representatives of Morocco, Tunisia and the Sudan, who have most recently joined us here.
92. There are other nations, however, particularly in the Far East, which are qualified and should be here. Japan has been excluded by the vote of a single State. We hope that speedy action may now be taken to pave the way for Japan’s entry at the earliest possible moment. The Republics of Korea and Viet-Nam are also fully deserving of admission and should be brought in without further delay.
93. The United States continues to oppose the seating of representatives of the Chinese Communist regime, which stands indicted for aggression by the United Nations, has demonstrated on many occasions its contempt for this Organization and has otherwise acted in defiance of the Charter.
94. The growth of the Organization from fifty-one to seventy-nine Members has not been reflected in the size of such important bodies as the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council. In the Security Council the Asian countries have never been adequately represented. Now, with the addition of six new Asian Members, this defect must be remedied without further delay. Likewise, the ten new European Members would justify more representation for the European region. In the circumstances, it would seem desirable to add two nonpermanent seats in the Security Council. It is also reasonable to increase the membership of the Economic and Social Council, perhaps by four seats.
95. The past year has also seen a major growth in the role of the Secretary-General. By steady and devoted effort, he has contributed in many ways towards resolving serious issues. The part he has been playing, especially in the Middle East, shows how much the Secretary-General can contribute to world peace. The United States wishes to record its thanks and congratulations to Mr. Hammarskjold, both for his devotion to his task and for his personal competence as a man of peace.
96. In recent weeks the United Nations has also shown its vitality in creating new instruments for peace. A historic step has been taken in forming a United Nations Emergency Force to secure and supervise the ending of hostilities in the Near East. This United Nations Force has had to be speedily improvised. The experience in forming and operating it will be invaluable for the future. But it emphasizes the need to develop the collective machinery essential to the maintenance of international peace and security.
97. The growth of the United Nations in response to concrete challenges has shown its vigour as an institution. The task of improving its capacity to settle disputes peacefully and to facilitate just change by peaceful means is never ending. We certainly have not exhausted the resources of the Charter for these purposes. For example, there is ample machinery available to adjudicate international legal disputes. Yet this machinery is seldom used. Only thirty-three States have accepted the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice. Other countries have generally refused to adjudicate their disputes when asked to do so. If the rule of law is to be established, we must not only have the law and the tribunals; we must also establish the habit and custom of being bound by law according to the judgement of an independent tribunal.
98. These are grave times. They call for the exercise of the utmost restraint and judgment on the part of all nations. They call for imaginative new approaches to the ancient problems of just and lasting peace.
99. Our goal must be a world in which nations and peoples can live side by side, whatever their internal political, economic and social systems, without fear and with real hope for self-fulfilment. The United Nations can be an agency of inestimable value in helping to work toward this goal. We cannot ask if it will succeed in its job. We must make it succeed.
100. Nothing could be clearer than the fact that a more effective United Nations serves the interest of every nation. We must strive to develop institutions through which the rights of all nations can be respected and justice can be secured in peaceful ways. Let us join together here to build a bridge from the past to the future, across which we can walk together in a new spirit of confidence.
101. I assure you that the United States will be untiring in this task.