On my first appearance at .thus rostrum since the election of the President of the General Assembly, permit me to offer him the congratulations and best wishes of my delegation. I should like also to seize this opportunity to associate my delegation with the well-earned tributes which have been paid to Mrs. Pandit, the outgoing President. We of Asia are proud of the gracious, skilful and impartial manner in which Mrs. Pandit conducted and guided the deliberations of the eighth session of the General Assembly, and our satisfaction and appreciation are not diminished in the slightest by the fact that Mrs. Pandit’s notable achievement has been just what we had come to expect of her.
12. We meet once more in the shadow of the hydrogen bomb, a shadow which grows in size with every month that passes. Man has at last mastered the secret of his own extinction. This is the most significant development in the entire history of mankind and one which calls for a new set of values and a new way of thinking. Throughout the ages, war has been abhorred, but nevertheless it has occurred with sickening regularity. Out of this has developed the feeling that war, despite all its horrors, is inevitable. The hydrogen bomb serves notice on mankind that it must banish all such thinking. Not only must mankind cease to think of war as inevitable, but it must be seized constantly with one overriding determination — the determination that there shall be no more war, big or small, limited or otherwise. The supreme need of the hour is to think straight, and man finds it difficult to think straight when the world is beset even with small or limited wars. We have heard before of wars to end all war. But the next one will end all war, and with it the human race.
13. We are sure that everyone in this hall is aware of this grim fact. But we make no apology for mentioning it because it is important that we keep it constantly in mind; and, furthermore, it is imperative that every man, woman and child on this planet should be made aware of its implications, since their future, and even their very existence, may depend on their understanding and appreciating them. Every opportunity should be seized to drive this lesson home. From this point of view it is unfortunate that hydrogen and atomic bomb tests, by their nature, have had to be carried out in the most sparsely populated areas of this globe.
14. It is against this background that we view the cessation of the fighting in Korea and Indo-China. The almost audible sigh of relief which went round the world when the Indo-China agreement was signed at Geneva was proof of the growing realization that this is indeed an interdependent age. It was a most heartening sign for the future. The people of Burma welcome the agreement, and on their behalf I wish to congratulate all those who participated in the Geneva Conference on their statesmanship and untiring efforts to bring to an end, at least temporarily, a dangerously explosive situation. The armistice agreements have still to be implemented, so that we are not yet out of the woods; but we are confident that this can be done successfully, given the same wise statesmanship and restraint which marked the final stages of the Geneva Conference. Those whose duty it is to ensure compliance with the armistice agreements shoulder a tremendous responsibility towards the entire world, and we are sure that they will fully discharge that responsibility. Perhaps more than most other nations, Burma has a vital interest in the final result, not only because of our geographical proximity to Indo-China, but also because we have a special interest in the outcome so far as concerns Laos and Cambodia, countries which are linked to us by ties of religion and culture.
15. The end of the fighting in Korea and Indo-China is indeed a matter for satisfaction and congratulation. But the conclusion of these conflicts represents only the first steps towards the restoration of peace to this unhappy world; it merely removes the symptoms of a deeper malady which has come to be known as the “cold war”. As long as this cold war continues to plague the world, the fate of mankind will remain in doubt. It consequently behooves all of us, even if we cannot bring the cold war to an end, to do all in our power to bring about an easing of that war. There are some who say that peaceful coexistence between the two ideological blocs is impossible because of the basic conflict between the two systems. To accept this contention against the background of the hydrogen bomb is, in our view, to submit to a counsel of despair. It seems to us that both systems have come to stay for the foreseeable future since neither can destroy the other without itself suffering fatal injuries. In other words, the alternative to coexistence seems to be no existence. We feel that the general acceptance of this basic fact would, in itself, go a long way towards removing some of the current cold war tensions. It is a matter of mental attitude or approach. If only all of us here could make this adjustment, we feel sure that it will be possible to work out a modus vivendi which would make life on the earth more tolerable for all of us. It is in trying to bring about this modus vivendi that this Organization can play not only a leading, but even a crucial role.
16. Burma, as a small nation, has always been a firm believer in the United Nations. Despite the obvious shortcomings of the Organization, we continue to have faith in it. If it was necessary nine years ago, it is even more necessary today. If it did not exist, we feel sure that the world would today be busily engaged in trying to establish it. A divided world stands in greater need of a common forum to keep it from becoming even more divided. Here we are in entire agreement with the views expressed by the Foreign Minister of Norway from this rostrum last Friday [476th meeting]. We would like to see every sovereign State represented here. We need them here to assist us in our quest for a modus vivendi. A situation in which so many influential States are kept out of our Organization is bad for the United Nations, for the States kept out, and for world peace. We shall therefore continue to strive to secure the admittance to the United Nations of all those independent States who wish to join it, including the newly independent States of Laos and Cambodia.
17. A related question is that of the representation of China, which is already a Member of the United Nations. I wish to make it clear that what I have to say now is no way motivated by ill-feeling or vindictiveness towards Formosa for what it has done in my country. We do not forget that it was the then Government of Nationalist China which sponsored our membership in the United Nations. In urging the seating of the Central People’s Government of China in this Organization we are merely taking cognizance of an existing fact. The fact is that the authorities of Formosa have long ceased to have any control over the Chinese mainland, and their representatives at the United Nations therefore do not represent the Chinese people. The failure of the United Nations to face up to this fact has been a major source of weakness to the Organization, since all discussions on questions in which China is interested — and there are many, since China is one of the great Powers — tend to be unreal. Furthermore, the denial by the United Nations to the Central People’s government of its legitimate rights as the successor of the former Nationalist Government has inevitably caused that Government to take a jaundiced view of the United Nations, thereby adding to the tensions which already exist.
18. In this connexion, I should like to recall to the Members of the Assembly the unanimous agreement reached on this question by the Prime Ministers of Ceylon, India, Indonesia, Pakistan and Burma at the Colombo Conference in May of this year. Paragraph 4 of the communique issued at the conclusion of that Conference reads: “The Prime Ministers considered the question of the representation of China in the United Nations by the Government of the People’s Republic of China. They felt that such representation would help to promote stability in Asia, ease world tensions, and assist in bringing about a more realistic approach to the problems concerning the world, particularly in the Far East.” Therefore, while the present session of the Assembly is precluded from taking up this question for the remainder of the year, we would like to urge, in the interests of the United Nations and of world peace, that the serious consideration of this matter should not be much longer delayed.
19. A number of speakers who preceded me at this rostrum have been critical of those of us in the Organization who follow a policy of non-alignment in the cold war. I do not need to go into the reasons for our maintaining this position since they are well known to all. Nor do I have to justify our attitude since this is a matter of exercising our sovereign rights. Strictly from the viewpoint of the United Nations, however, we should have thought that the existence within the Organization of a neutral group of countries is more of an asset than a liability. Surely the usefulness of the United Nations would be seriously impaired if every Member of the Organization were to align itself with one or other of the two major blocs. The effectiveness of this Organization as a place for discussion and for seeking compromises would then be greatly reduced, if not completely destroyed. Since, as we see it, one of the principal tasks facing the United Nations is to try to work out some means of peaceful coexistence, we would regard the division of the entire membership of the United Nations into two clear-cut blocs as a tragedy for all concerned. In short, we feel that our position of non-alignment serves a useful and what might become an essential purpose to the United Nations and to the cause of world peace. By maintaining friendly relations with all States and by aligning ourselves with none, we feel that we, and those who share our view, may eventually serve as some kind of bridge. Indeed, the ideal United Nations, as we see it, would be one in which there are no blocs at all, and in which each Member State can consider each issue strictly on its merits and not be bound by some degree of loyalty to one bloc or another. Consequently, we cannot help but deplore the present trend whereby some Member States tend to drift away from a policy of non-alignment. As a country we have no desire to criticize them, nor do we feel we have the right to do so. But as a Member of this Organization, we regard it as a development which augurs ill for the future of the United Nations, and we feel that it is our duty to express our concern.
20. So far, I have been discussing what might be termed the impact of the hydrogen bomb on all our lives. I turn now to the bomb itself, and this inevitably brings up the question of disarmament. The current armaments race is, of course, a symptom of the cold war. Unless and until the cold war abates, there can be little prospect of securing any meaningful agreement on disarmament. This does not mean that no attempt should be made to obtain such an agreement; such attempts should proceed concurrently with our attempts to obtain an easing of the tensions of the cold war. We therefore stand firmly behind the Disarmament Commission and the General Assembly in their efforts to find a solution which would cover both conventional and nuclear armaments, since the two are inseparable. However, we deplore the tendency which has been exhibited by the General Assembly to adopt resolutions on disarmament which lack the unanimous agreement of all the principal parties concerned. Such resolutions are inevitably still-born, and in our view do not help to advance the cause of disarmament. Rather they tend to retard progress because they leave the dissident minority with a sense of defeat and isolation. We do not know of any rule which prescribes that every discussion in the United Nations must end with a vote. In many cases, we feel that it would be better to have no resolution at all than to have a self-defeating resolution.
21. Having said this, I should like to refer to a matter on which it should be possible to reach agreement despite the cold war. This is the question of the cessation of all further experiments designed to produce bigger and better thermo-nuclear and atomic weapons. If what we read in the newspapers is correct, the type of hydrogen bomb already in existence has sufficient potency to extinguish life on this globe. Surely, then, we have already reached the ultimate. To continue the search for more powerful types would, in the circumstances, seem to us to be particularly senseless. Such experiments would only add greatly to the existing tensions, thereby bringing nearer the day when these weapons of mass destruction might be brought into use. One of the principal obstacles to an agreement on disarmament has been the difficulties inherent in inspection and control. In regard to new experiments with atomic and thermonuclear devices, however, it seems that this difficulty does not exist since all atomic and hydrogen bomb explosions can be readily detected. Any violation of an agreement to stop further experiments would therefore become known at once, and the violator would earn the condemnation of the entire world. In addition, we would urge that an attempt should be made to agree on publishing authoritative information regarding the destructive capabilities and the known and probable disastrous effects of these weapons. As the Prime Ministers of Ceylon, India, Indonesia, Pakistan and Burma said in their final communique after the Colombo Conference: “. . . such publicity, by arousing the conscience of the world, would help in the search for an agreed solution of the grave problem that threatens humanity”.
22. Like so many delegations which have preceded us, we warmly welcome the initiative taken by the United States with regard to the development of an international pool of atomic energy for peaceful purposes. The unanimous decision of the Assembly to include this item on its agenda [478th meeting] is to us one of the most important and significant developments of the year, and we look forward to the discussion with the hope that unanimous agreement will be reached to establish such a pool.
23. Now for a quick survey of some of the other grave problems which face our world. Though these problems often tend to take a back seat compared with the questions which I have already discussed, it would be a grave error to underrate their importance.
24. The first of these is the continued existence of colonialism in various forms on the face of this planet. Colonialism, as we see it, is the domination of one people by another; and since it is a violation of fundamental human rights and a threat to the peace of the world, we condemn it without exception, wherever it may occur, and in whatever form. It has been Burma’s consistent policy to support the cause of all colonial peoples in their struggle for national freedom. At this session, as in the past, we shall adhere uncompromisingly to this stand. We believe that good government is no substitute for self-government, and we will not swerve from this view.
25. A second problem is one to which we have adverted in our previous interventions in the general debates of the Assembly. This problem was put in a nutshell by the Foreign Minister of the Netherlands in his speech on 27 September last [480th meeting], when he said: “If I may venture to make a prognosis, I might say that history’s verdict on the success or failure of this ninth session of the Assembly will depend largely on the outcome of one particular item of the agenda now before us: the question whether we shall be able to find a solution for the problem of the financing of the economic development of the under-developed countries.”
26. Apart from the hydrogen bomb, this is without doubt the gravest of the long-term problems facing the world. The existing and widening gap in the living standards between the highly industrialized and the under-developed countries of the world poses a threat to world peace which might quite conceivably over-shadow the current cold war. We regret to have to say that the urgency of this problem does not seem to be fully appreciated. The tendency is unfortunately to subordinate this colossal problem to the more immediate problems brought on by the cold war. Those Member States which are in a position to make the most effective contribution towards finding a solution to this problem seemingly take the attitude that it is something that can wait until better times. In our view, it cannot wait. By its nature, it is a problem which calls for a long-range solution. The results of any long-range plan will take decades to become apparent, even with all the acceleration that man can devise. This surely makes it imperative to get off to an immediate start.
27. The various programmes already instituted have done little more than scratch the surface. If proof of this is required, it is amply demonstrated by the fad to which I have already referred, the widening in recent years of the gap in living standards between the more fortunate and less fortunate parts of our globe.
28. The United Nations technical assistance Programme has done excellent work in this field within its extremely limited resources. But its achievements have been pitifully inadequate in relation to the overall need.
29. We of the under-developed areas do not ask charity. There is no under-developed country which is not putting everything it can afford into meeting this challenge. Burma, for instance, has an eight-year programme of economic and social development which engages the attention of every leader and draws on our every resource. In spite of this, however, we will need assistance if the programme is to be successfully implemented.
30. Once again we would like to urge the Assembly to give its earnest consideration to this problem. In the realization that we live in a world rushing towards interdependence, we should resolve that we shall not rest until a solution has been found. Indeed, it is our conviction that the prime need of the under-developed countries is economic and technical assistance, and not military assistance.
31. Finally, I turn to the item on our agenda with which my delegation is most intimately concerned. As Members of the Assembly will have seen from the report [A/2739] which my Government has recently submitted to the United Nations, the problem has been eased but not liquidated. There are still several thousand Kuomintang troops on our soil. Their continued existence represents a threat, not only to our country, but to the peace and tranquillity of the whole of South-East Asia. We shall continue our efforts to liquidate this problem in its entirety, and in this endeavour we are confident that we shall continue to have. the moral support which this Assembly has so generously extended to us in the past.