Mr. President, allow me to join previous speakers in congratulating you upon your election to the high office of President of this session of the General Assembly. The heavy responsibilities of the presidency have been laid upon a person eminently equipped to discharge them to the satisfaction of the Member States and to the benefit of the United Nations.
49. May I also take this opportunity on behalf of the Norwegian Government, to greet the four new Member States — Rwanda, Burundi, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago — which were admitted to our Organization oh the very opening day of this, session.
50. This, to me, is another demonstration of what I consider to be; the most important political development of our times. The fact that nearly half the Member States of the United Nations have won their national independence since the founding of the Organization illustrates the scope and speed of the change which has taken place in the political structure of the world. To those who might have harboured doubts about the inevitability of this, process of liberation, surely the rapid development of the last few years must have offered convincing proof.
51. The final outcome is clear beyond doubt. There will be no end to the striving towards freedom until the remaining dependent territories; have exercised their right of self-determination. Our duty is to promote and to facilitate this process and to ensure that it takes a peaceful course. The dramatic changes which we have witnessed within a short space of time could not have been brought about without creating difficulties and problems. A wholly new system based on co-operation-between sovereign States, is struggling to replace the old pattern of relationships between peoples, in the two largest continents of the world. The international community is being significantly enlarged and enriched, but at the same time it is faced with tremendous tasks as a result of this historic upheaval.
52. The United Nations will continue to have an essential part to play in this new situation. The expectations and, hopes of the peoples that the Organization will assist them in solving their problems place responsibilities upon us all. To discharge them, the United Nations has gradually, as the need arose, adopted a whole set of measures to assist the dependent peoples. The United Nations has supervised elections or plebiscites, provided good offices or established its temporary presence in a troubled area.
53. Last year, a new technique was designed to meet the particular needs in the dispute over West Irian. There, the United Nations is in the process of temporarily taking over the administration in order to avoid the dangers inherent in a vacuum. It is a source of satisfaction to my Government both that this dispute has been settled and that the Organization once again has shown its capability to cope with new situations.
54. The assistance and the services of the United Nations in assuring a peaceful fulfilment of the aspirations of dependent peoples are today being rejected in certain situations in Africa where they are urgently needed. This attitude of non-co-operation is a matter of deep concern to the people and the Government of Norway, because the final choice facing the administering Powers is not one between denying and granting the right to self-determination, but rather one between the achievement of legitimate aspirations through peaceful means and their achievement through violence. If the potentialities of the United Nations were recognized, administering Powers which are now refusing co-operation would no doubt find that the world Organization would once more establish reasonable procedures and modalities for rendering effective assistance, adjusted to the actual needs and circumstances.
55. Turning, now to the, industrialized and developed nations, the post-war years have been dominated by the East-West conflict. This fact has often been reflected in the debates of this Assembly and has at times paralysed the activities of the Organization in important fields. Far be it from me to underestimate the risks and the dangers inherent in the East-West situation. The problems around the City of Berlin have time and again demonstrated how easily an armed conflict might be sparked. The continued arms race is a frightening expression of the prevailing mutual distrust.
56. Both these problems are of such a nature that they might lead to acute and dangerous conflicts, and it is a task of paramount importance to avoid stumbling into a catastrophe and to lay the basis for the realistic negotiation of lasting solutions. What nevertheless gives us reason for optimism is the recognition by both sides that, an armed conflict must be avoided and the fact that negotiations concerning general and complete disarmament and a ban on nuclear tests have been resumed; based on the principles which were, unanimously endorsed by the General, Assembly a year ago. My Government believes that at this session the General Assembly should take care not to impede in any way the work of the Conference of the Eighteen- Nation Committee on Disarmament, which is to, reconvene at Geneva in November.
57. Is it too much to hope that our discussions here may give encouragement and guidance to the negotiating nations in Geneva — in particular, with regard to the cessation of nuclear tests, where the distance between the positions of the two sides has been considerably narrowed?
58. The East-West conflict is likely to continue for a considerable period of time. Nevertheless, it is my hope that we shall live to see this conflict recede, and eventually, prove to be a passing phase in human history. We must Constantly strive for an improvement in the relations between East and West and utilize every opportunity to reach negotiated settlements on specific issues. At the same time, the developed part of the world, both East and West, most concentrate sufficient attention on a problem which may ultimately prove to be of even greater danger to mankind — the gap between the rich and the poor countries.
59. The Acting Secretary-General often drawn attention to the pressing problem and he does so once more in the following words, in the introduction [A/5201/Add.1] to his report to this seventeenth session of the General Assembly: "... the present division of the world into rich and poor countries is, in my opinion, much more real and much more Serious, and ultimately much more explosive, than the division of the world on ideological grounds". I subscribe to the views of the Secretary-General on this point.
60. It is to be hoped that, in the years to come, efforts to bridge this gap will increasingly predominate in international co-operation. World-Wide co-operation will indeed be required. The United Nations should play an, increasing role in this connexion and we, as Member States, should equip it with the necessary tools and provide the means required for it to fulfil this task. This may well necessitate an extension of the executive functions of the Organization. An important step in the right direction was taken last year with the unanimous designation of the 1960’s as the United Nations Development Decade. The task now before us is to launch a full-scale and sustained attack on poverty, disease, hunger and illiteracy.
61. It is now for Member nations to live up to their obligations. Failure to do so is bound to have serious consequences and may even have harmful effects on the very future of the Organization. If, on the other hand, the Member nations meet this challenge, and the United Nations participation in the carrying out of this tremendous task is crowned with success it will, I am sure, definitely brighten prospects for the future of our Organization. We will then have taken a considerable step towards making the United Nations the indispensable instrument for the solution of the pressing problems of the international community.
62. In the introduction [A/4800/Add.1] to the Secretary-General’s report to the sixteenth session of the General Assembly, the late Dag Hammarskjold strongly advocated; this concept of the United Nations as a dynamic instrument, both for reconciliation and for executive action. He emphasized that there could be no standing still in the development of international co-operation. It would either, have to proceed or recede. We owe much to Dag Hammarskjold for his clearsighted analysis of the problems and prospects of the United Nations, and his realistic, assessment of the possibilities of the Organization within the framework of the. Charter. My Government shares his views of international co-operation as an evolution towards the ultimate goal of international order under law.
63. In fact, considerable progress Has been made in the development of contacts and of habits of co-operation. The United Nations, with its specialized agencies, is engaged in efficient day-to-day co-operation in a variety of fields ranging from the intricate problems of modern telecommunications to basic assistance of a humanitarian nature. These manifold and beneficial activities of the United Nations family of agencies do not normally stand in the centre of attention. I, for one, see great value in this unspectacular practical co-operation, even beyond the immediate results achieved. It helps to strengthen and develop habits of international co-operation across political, ideological and religious barriers.
64. The need to bring the poorer parts of the world up to a reasonable, growing and self-sustaining level of economic development, will certainly rail for co-operation in many fields of human activity. Scientific and technological developments dramatically demonstrated by man’s conquest of space, also require international co-operation. The compelling need to reach some sort of control of the arms race, and more particularly, of the development and proliferation of new weapons, clearly points in the same direction.
65. The steadily increasing extent of international co-operation, centred in the United Nations and its specialized agencies, is in the long run bound to affect the attitude of nations and lead to lasting habits of peaceful and open co-operation between them. Development in this direction may also make it possible for nations gradually to dispense with the strict and jealous exercise of sovereignty in the traditional sense. The revolutionary advances in the field of science cannot be fully utilized, and the requirements of modern production and distribution cannot be adequately met, within the narrow confines of national entities.
66. As I have already said, my Government believes that we should build on the United Nations in our striving to consolidate and develop habits of international co-operation. Recent developments have clearly demonstrated, however, both the need for action by the United Nations and the limits which present conditions set to such action. We must take care not to demand of the United Nations what it clearly cannot do and thus risk failure, with all the dangers that might ensue. Too ambitious action, desirable as it may seem in a difficult situation, may destroy the very possibilities that exist for the United Nations to play a useful role. We must constantly keep in mind the delicate balance that has to be struck in order not to strain the Organization beyond its present possibilities.
67. When the sixteenth session of the General Assembly convened in September 1961, the Organization was faced with a very bleak prospect of bankruptcy. The financial situation is still far from satisfactory, but considerable encouragement with regard to the financial prospects of the United Nations may be found in the wide participation in the bond issue. Being a necessary stopgap measure, the bond issue itself does not represent any solution of basic problems, but the fact that so many States have purchased bonds gives reason for optimism. The decisions of Governments to do so are votes of confidence in the United Nations. The Norwegian delegation would in particular like to pay tribute to the many developing States that have participated in the bond issue in spite of their pressing economic and social needs. They too regard the United Nations as a sound investment.
68. As a corollary to the decision to float the bond issue, the International Court of Justice was requested to give an advisory opinion regarding the nature of the expenditures for peace-keeping operations. We are all familiar with the conclusions of the Court and we shall discuss them later during this session. The Norwegian Government hopes that the outcome of these discussions will help to overcome the financial crisis of our Organization without endangering its, higher interests.
69. With the greater responsibilities entrusted to, the United Nations, the number of problems brought before the General Assembly has sharply increased in recent years and made it more or less impossible for the Assembly to complete its work within the period of time allocated for the purpose. It seems to be widely agreed that a reappraisal of the working habits of the General Assembly and a certain rationalization of its work is called for. To this end, the President, of the sixteenth session of the Assembly has suggested a number of specific measures [A/5123] which the Norwegian delegation will be happy to support. In our opinion the suggested measures would, without limiting freedom, of expression or the thorough preparation of decisions, greatly improve the efficiency of the General Assembly and thereby contribute to the realization of the aims and purposes of our Organization.
70. The agenda which has been approved by the General Committee is extraordinarily heavy. It contains a number of important and complicated issues in the political as well as in the economic field. The hard core of colonial questions is also still before us. We embark upon all these problems against the background of an uncertain international situation. The prospects for our work will to some extent depend upon the development of that situation. But similarly, what we are able to accomplish at this session will contribute to an improvement of the general international climate.
71. In this respect, each Member country, whether large or small, has its responsibility and its role to play. For her part, Norway will continue, within her means, to respond in a positive way to any request for further participation in United Nations efforts and programmes.