May I first of all, on behalf of the Romanian delegation, congratulate the President of the General Assembly on his election to the Presidency for this session.
75. The agenda of the seventeenth session includes questions of great significance for international life; but these questions, varied as they are, are closely linked with the fundamental problem of our times — the safeguarding and consolidation of peace, which is the principal task of the United Nations and the very reason for its existence.
76. Mankind has arrived, today, at a crucial juncture. The progress of thought, science and technology has opened up the noblest and most generous prospects for human life, and has placed at man's disposal the means of realizing them within the lifetime of the present generation.
77. On the other hand, while the urgent needs of economic and social development await their satisfaction over vast areas of the globe, the greatest and most important part of scientific and technological achievement is at present employed in creating means of destruction, the uninterrupted accumulation and perfecting of which threaten the whole of mankind with a catastrophe of incalculable proportions.
78. We reaffirm our strong conviction that there is undeniably a possibility of averting such a catastrophe and of ensuring peace, freedom and prosperity for mankind. But if this objective is to be attained, all our reason, resolution and courage must be devoted to it. The fundamental cause of the danger threatening us must be understood; it lies in the policy of force whereby the imperialist circles try to maintain or reestablish their privileges and domination in respect of other peoples.
79. It is precisely this policy which underlies the arms race. It is this policy which works against the peoples' liberation from the colonial yoke, which hampers the employment of material and human resources for the improvement of man's life, and which keeps the world in a state of security that is precarious in the extreme and may at any moment be upset.
80. A particular and acute expression of this policy is the attitude of the United States towards Cuba. The aggressive acts and provocations organized by the United States against Cuba represent interference in the domestic affairs of a free and sovereign State, an attempt to contest by force the inalienable right of the Cuban people to build its life according to its aspirations and its national interests. In our day, when the maintenance of peace and the defence of national independence are indissolubly linked, such a policy is a source of grave and immediate menace to the peace of the world. Cuba, this little State in the Caribbean sea, has become the symbol of a great cause — the cause of the freedom and independence of all peoples, the cause of all those to whom peace is dear.
81. The Romanian delegation reaffirms, from this rostrum, the total solidarity of the Romanian people and Government with the heroic people and Revolutionary Government of Cuba which are defending their conquests and vital interests with courage and dignity.
82. It is the duty of the United Nations to use all its authority and to support Cuba against attempts to replace international legality and the principles of the Charter by the rule of force. We express the hope that firm action by the international community will make reason and lucidity prevail in the policy of the United States, thus putting an end to the present dangerous course of events.
83. The maintenance in Europe of the after-effects of the Second World War, seventeen years after its close, and above all the absence of a peace treaty with Germany, likewise create a dangerous situation for the peace of the European continent and the entire world. The seriousness of this situation is illustrated by the conversion of West Berlin, under the occupation regime, into a NATO outpost on the territory of a socialist country, into a base for activity against the socialist countries. The longer that state of affairs continues, the more the dangers increase. The recent acts of provocation against the German Democratic Republic, the ever-expanding range of West German revenge-seeking activities, and the greater efforts to secure the equipment of the "Bundeswehr" with rockets and nuclear weapons, either directly or through NATO, bear eloquent witness to this.
84. The position of the Romanian People's Republic on this matter has been clearly stated on numerous occasions. The interests of European security demand the conclusion of a German peace treaty formally recognizing the present boundaries of Germany and ensuring the dissolution of the occupation régime in West Berlin.
85. This vital issue has not yet been settled because of the negative position taken by the Western Powers, which have rejected all constructive proposals advanced by the socialist countries. In an attempt to justify their position, the Western Powers distort the meaning of these proposals and claim that to carry them out would create a danger to world peace. But it is the very lack of a peace treaty with Germany and the very refusal to recognize the present German boundaries and to respect the sovereignty of the German Democratic Republic that encourage the militarist revanchist circles in the Federal Republic of Germany and constitute the main threat to European peace and security.
86. The representatives of the West maintain that their position is dictated by concern for the freedom of the West Berlin population. But what a strange notion of freedom it is which leads to the rejection of proposals for the creation of a system of international guarantees, and to the endorsement of the occupation regime in West Berlin! It is this same notion of "freedom under the protection of foreign arms "which the Western Powers are trying to apply elsewhere in the world. But this notion in fact constitutes a denial of freedom and an infringement of the rules of international law; indeed, it has nothing to do with the interests of world peace and security.
87. A workable peaceful settlement of the German problems must have a starting point, the acceptance of the real situation, which is that the German Democratic Republic exists, that it is steadily developing and growing stronger, and that it represents an active factor in the struggle for peace and national security and independence. The recognition of the existence of two sovereign German States and their admission to the United Nations would be an important step towards the lessening of tensions in Europe and throughout the world.
88. The Romanian Government is convinced that a peaceful settlement of the German and West Berlin issues based on an agreement among all participants in the anti-Hitler coalition is entirely possible, and it for one will make its full contribution to that end. If, however, the efforts of the socialist countries to settle this problem continue to meet with opposition from the Western Powers, the Romanian People's Republic, along with the other socialist countries and other States ready to do so, will sign a peace treaty with the German Democratic Republic, whatever the consequences.
89. In examining the main sources of tension in the world, we cannot overlook the situation prevailing in Asia and the Far East.
90. In South Viet-Nam, the United States has engaged in direct military intervention in order to crush the people's resistance to a corrupt regime which remains in power thanks only to United States military support. Actions of this kind imperil the peace and security of the peoples of South-East Asia. The Romanian Government fully supports the request of the Democratic Republic of Viet-Nam addressed to the President and Members of the General Assembly that they should use their authority to induce the United States Government to honour its international commitments under the Geneva agreements on Viet-Nam.
91. The interests of peace and security in the Far East further require the ending of the military occupation of South Korea so that conditions for Korean unification on a peaceful and democratic basis may be established.
92. Another factor heightening the danger of war is the propaganda for preventive nuclear war being carried on in some NATO countries and the statements of some very high officials in those countries calling for the delivery of the first nuclear strike.
93. In our opinion the General Assembly can and must make an immediate contribution towards reducing the danger of war and lessening world tensions by condemning propaganda favouring preventive nuclear war. The draft resolution submitted to the Assembly by the USSR delegation [A/5232] offers a suitable basis for the adoption of effective measures in that sphere.
94. Relations of peaceful coexistence among States having different social systems are not only an objective necessity but an indisputable reality of our time. The general debate at this session further confirms the viability of peaceful coexistence while clearly demonstrating the isolation of those who, blinded by passions and anti-communist prejudices, still refuse to accept this fact. The delegation of the Romanian People's Republic considers it essential that, through the resolutions it will adopt and the spirit of its deliberations , the General Assembly should vigorously promote the principles of peaceful coexistence, ward off the serious dangers which threaten the world and defend the rights of peoples to full freedom and independence.
95. Without doubt the main issue before the General Assembly remains general and complete disarmament — the sole means of averting the danger of war and of satisfying the peoples' desire for peace.
96. At its sixteenth session, the General Assembly helped to pave the way for fruitful negotiations on this subject. As a result of the proposals put forward by the socialist countries at the fifteenth session, the principles of general and complete disarmament were adopted and a new negotiating body, the Eighteen-Nation Committee, for the first time including neutral States, was established [see General Assembly resolution 1722 (XVI)]. The General Assembly asked this Committee to prepare a treaty on general and complete disarmament
97. The fact that after five months of negotiations the Eighteen-Nation Committee is not in a position to report any concrete results to the General Assembly is due to the negative position taken by the Western Powers. This is clearly demonstrated by their attitude towards nuclear disarmament.
98. As a member of the Eighteen-Nation Committee, Romania takes the view, along with the other socialist countries, that to ban and destroy nuclear weapons, to take drastic measures to eliminate at the very first stage the possibility of nuclear war, is the first, the most urgent and the most important objective to be attained in the process of general and complete disarmament. It is, we believe, the prime criterion by which to judge the efficacity of any plan for general and complete disarmament. The essential feature of the USSR draft treaty on general and complete disarmament under strict international control is its complete consistency with this criterion.
99. Unlike the USSR proposals, the outline presented by the United States and supported by the other Western delegations does not solve the problem of removing the danger of nuclear war. There is no more eloquent proof of this than the refusal to agree even to the prohibition of the use of nuclear weapons. This position is part of a general policy of speeding up the arms race, proclaiming the attainment and maintenance of military superiority as a prime objective and advocating a preemptive nuclear strike. In this light the requests of the Western Powers regarding arms control cannot be viewed as anything more than a part of NATO's strategic plans.
100. The socialist countries have demonstrated their continuing desire to negotiate in good faith, to meet the Western Powers part way and to examine carefully any constructive proposal, from whatever quarter it may come. That attitude is further manifested in the proposal submitted to the General Assembly by the head of the USSR delegation on 21 September 1962 [1127th meeting] to the effect that for a period of time a strictly limited number of missiles would be retained by the United States and the Soviet Union.
101. If progress is to he made in the disarmament negotiations, the United States and other Western Powers must adopt a position in keeping with the interests of peace and of the security of all peoples. When we consider the question of the suspension of nuclear tests, we realize how useful such a change would be for the settlement of the disarmament problem.
102. In the Eighteen-Nation Committee, the delegations of the socialist countries and the delegations of the eight neutral States made persistent efforts to bring about an agreement. But the Western delegations refused to negotiate on the basis of the constructive proposals submitted to the Geneva Conference and formulated conditions which would assure them definite military advantages. Such an attitude can hardly facilitate the reaching of agreement; indeed, it can only prevent agreement.
103. The Romanian delegation considers that the General Assembly must examine most attentively and responsibly the reasons why no progress was made in the negotiations on general and complete disarmament and on a treaty for the prohibition of nuclear tests.
104. It must adopt resolutions likely to contribute to a solution of these problems. The adoption of measures to encourage a reduction in international tension and to strengthen confidence among States is of great importance to the cause of general and complete disarmament. In this respect the Romanian People's Republic attaches particular importance to the establishment of denuclearized zones in Central Europe, the Balkans and Northern Europe, and also in Africa, Latin America and other parts of the world. As the debate at the present session has shown, this idea is gaining ground.
105. I should now like to turn to another question to which the General Assembly should devote great attention, namely, the economic programme for disarmament, a question placed on the agenda at the initiative of the Soviet Union [A/5233J. This proposal has the merit of placing the key question of international life, general and complete disarmament, in its over-all context. This context is the transition to a new era in the development of human society, an era in which wars will be a thing of the past and mankind will be able to use its own energies and the resources of our planet to build a world free from poverty and hunger, a world characterized by peaceful relations of friendly and fruitful co-operation among countries and peoples.
106. The normalization of international trade is another urgent task confronting the United Nations. As a result of the discriminatory policies practised by certain countries, negative phenomena are to be observed in this important field of inter-State relations. These negative phenomena have been accentuated by the emergence of closed economic groupings, particularly since the establishment of the European Common Market. The multilateral development of world trade is being seriously hampered by the economic groupings of the Western countries, the application of discriminatory customs tariffs, the closing of markets, quantitative restrictions, etc. These groupings resort to economic integration either to maintain their former colonial privileges or to obtain new ones by taking advantage of the economic difficulties of countries which have recently become independent. Their economic foreign policy is being increasingly subordinated to political and military interests.
107. In its economic relations with other States, the Romanian People's Republic observes the principle of peaceful and multilateral co-operation based on strict respect for the interests of all peoples and on the equal rights of all States. The Romanian People's Republic is developing its external trade with an ever greater number of countries, irrespective of their social or political systems. Today our country is doing business with more than eighty States. Its economic development, characterized by a rising rate of growth, equilibrium and stability, augurs well for a continuous expansion of its trade relations.
108. With a view to basing world trade on peaceful co-operation among States, the Romanian Government supports the proposal for the holding of an international conference on trade problems [A/5219] and declares its readiness to take part in such a conference, which will discuss the creation of an international trade organization open to all countries, irrespective of their economic or social systems.
109. The period which has elapsed since the adoption by the General Assembly, at the initiative of the Soviet Union, of the Declaration on the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples [resolution 1514 (XV)] has confirmed the historical significance of this document. During this period, new countries won their independence and are now playing an active part in international life, making a valuable contribution to the solution of the main problems confronting mankind today. That is why the Romanian. Government and people support the just struggle of the peoples to throw off colonial domination, and sincerely rejoice at each success of the national liberation movement. We take this opportunity to greet the new States of Rwanda, Burundi, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago, which have recently acceded to independence and become Members of the United Nations.
110. We offer our warmest congratulations to the glorious Algerian people who, after long years of heroic struggle and enormous sacrifices, have won their freedom and national independence. The day when, in the near future, the representatives of the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria take their seats in this hall will be an occasion of legitimate rejoicing for all those who, over the years, have defended the just cause of the Algerian people. That day will be a landmark in the life of our Organization.
111. We cannot, however, overlook the fact that two years after adoption of the Declaration on the liquidation of colonialism there are still more than eighty territories in the world under colonial rule. The colonial Powers are seeking to sabotage the implementation of the Declaration, using every means in their power to delay the liquidation of a system condemned by history. They are organizing joint action to repress the liberation movement by armed force, encouraging the racist policies of the Government of South Africa and seeking new ways of maintaining their political and economic domination over the peoples they have held in subjection for years and in some cases for centuries. It is the duty of the General Assembly to take firm action to ensure that the provisions of the Declaration are respected and to take practical steps to remove the last vestiges of colonialism.
112. The Romanian people is devoting its energies to peaceful construction, to the rapid development of its national economy and to progressively raising its material and cultural level of living.
113. Expressing the will and the fundamental interests of the whole people, the Romanian Government consistently practices a foreign policy of peace, and resolutely champions the normalization of international life and the establishment of relations of fruitful co-operation among all States. Convinced that the consolidation of peace is an endeavour which demands the efforts of all States, the Romanian People's Republic is making its own contribution to creating a climate of international relaxation and peaceful coexistence, both in its own geographical area and in the world as a whole. Our country maintains political and diplomatic, economic and cultural relations, based on full equality and mutual respect, with many States in Europe, Asia, Africa and America, and constantly seeks to develop these relations. Our country attaches particular importance to the development of multilateral collaboration among the States of the Balkan area.
114. The Romanian Government which, as early as 1957, put forward proposals for an understanding among the Balkan States, is continuing its active efforts in this direction so that the Balkans may become a zone of peace and co-operation. The conclusion of a treaty of understanding and collective security with a view to transforming the Balkans into a zone of peace, without nuclear weapons or rockets, would serve the interests of all the peoples of this area and greatly help to relax international tension.
115. At this session the General Assembly is going to take up the agenda item entitled "Measures designed to promote among youth the ideals of peace, mutual respect and understanding between peoples" [item 83] which, owing to the initiative of the Romanian Government, has been before the Assembly since 1960. We think this is one of the most important issues of the day, and we hope the Assembly will examine it carefully.
116. The Romanian delegation shares the concern expressed in the General Assembly for the strengthening of the effectiveness and authority of the United Nations as an instrument of international peace and co-operation.
117. From this point of view, the violation of the legitimate rights of the People's Republic of China in the United Nations as a result of the hostile policy of the United States gravely jeopardizes the normal activity, prestige and authority of the Organization as well as the cause of international co-operation. The absence from the United Nations of the People's Republic of China, one of the great Powers and a permanent member of the Security Council, reduces the Organization's capacity to contribute to a settlement of major international questions. It is the Assembly's duty to put an end to this unjust situation which is at variance both with reality and with the principles of the Charter. The legitimate rights of the People's Republic of China in the United Nations must be restored without delay and the Chang Kai-shek clique removed from all United Nations bodies.
118. While the principles on which the United Nations rests are consonant with the tasks with which life has confronted it, its structure has not been modified to take account of the great changes which have taken place in the world in the past seventeen years, that is to say, since the signing of the Charter. The Romanian delegation therefore considers that the structure of the United Nations must be brought into conformity with the situation, in the world today, so that the three groups of States — socialist States, States belonging to Western military blocs and neutral States — are represented equally in the principal organs of the United Nations.
119. The financial difficulties now confronting the Organization are the consequence of acts of direct or indirect aggression by certain imperialist Powers. The Romanian Government will not be a party to measures designed to defray these expenses, whatever manoeuvres are employed in the attempt to give them an appearance of legality. In no circumstances can the principle of collective responsibility be applied to the costs arising from the consequences of aggression.
120. The questions before the General Assembly at this session are many and complex. We do not suppose for a moment that they will admit of easy solutions. But we are convinced that in this age, as a result of the changed balance of power in the world, these questions can be resolved peacefully, by negotiation, in the interests of peace and the progress of mankind.
121. The settlement by negotiation of the question of Laos is a conclusive example. Another is the agreement signed by Indonesia and the Netherlands regarding West Irian [A/5170, annex]. The Romanian People's Republic, which has always supported the legitimate rights of the Indonesian people, welcomes with satisfaction the agreement uniting West Irian and Indonesia.
122. However, if the possibility of ensuring peace is to be transformed into reality, determined efforts and actions are required on the part of all States.
123. As was stressed by Mr. Gheorghiu-Dej, President of the State Council of the Romanian People's Republic, what is needed is wisdom and mature reflexion in policy and the greatest care to strengthen peace and eliminate the dangers hanging over mankind; every Government, every statesman with a sense of responsibility towards his own and other peoples must act in the realization of this necessity.
124. The Romanian delegation will spare no effort to this end and will make its full contribution to bringing the work of this session of the General Assembly to a satisfactory conclusion.