Iraq

It is, Sir, a pleasure to express to you on behalf of the delegation of the Republic of Iraq and on my own behalf warmest congratulations on your election as President of the thirty-seventh session of the General Assembly. I am sure that you will conduct the proceedings of this session with all the wisdom and knowledge you are known for, and I wish you success in discharging the duties of your high post. May I also express our appreciation for the Great Spirit of co-operation which the General Assem¬bly showed Mr. Kittani, President of the thirty-sixth session. We are satisfied that he enjoyed the confidence and appreciation of this esteemed body, which made it possible for him to perform his functions most efficiently at the last session. I would also take this opportunity to express whole-hearted congratulations and best wishes for success to Mr. Perez de Cuellar on his election as Secretary-General. I am confident that he will be able to fulfill the functions of his distinguished post and to deal with momentous international events requiring him to exercise all the virtues of knowledge, patience and wisdom for which he is known. 67. The world is going through a delicate and fright¬ening era unprecedented since the Second World War. Undoubtedly the tense world situation, with all the grave consequences that could flow from such a state of affairs, is being steadily exacerbated because of the intensifying rivalry among the great Powers, which jeopardizes world security and peace and disturbs the confidence of peoples and their aspira¬tions to achieve detente and peaceful coexistence. This hazardous phenomenon engulfs the third world coun¬tries, particularly the non-aligned ones. It presents them with the dangers of confrontation and the devastating effects of tensions, and it threatens to expand the centers of polarization by luring third world nations and bringing pressure to bear upon them in a bid to exhaust material and human resources that otherwise would be used to achieve security, stability and development for those nations. 68. What the great Powers and colonial States are reluctant to accept is the fact that the non- aligned nations, which forced their way to freedom and sovereignty through decades of struggle and a deter¬mination to achieve full independence and to exer¬cise their free will, are determined not to form part of military blocs that are engaged in global conflict and to steer clear of the currents generated by the centers of polarization. No wonder, then, that conflict persists between the non-aligned movement on the one side and colonialism, including Zionism, on the other. 69. Iraq, being a non-aligned State, backs the policy of independence which any State might pursue. It maintains that all States should manage their affairs on the basis of the fundamental principles of the United Nations and in accordance with their legitimate national interests that are compatible with those principles, regardless of the requirements of bloc policies and cold war. That would serve the cause of maintaining world peace and encouraging the trend towards progress and freedom, as well as political and economic independence, and the cause of extending the principles of justice and equality to all nations, regardless of size, affiliation and of any power con¬siderations. 70. Iraq abides by the principles of non-alignment and wishes to advance the non-aligned movement, to maintain a sound relationship among its members and to promote its effective role in international relations. Iraq is also determined to implement those principles in order to ensure security, justice and economic well-being. Thus, over 10 years ago, Iraq offered to host the Seventh Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries at Baghdad. Indeed, it was those very principles which prompted Iraq not to insist that the Conference be held at the scheduled time and place, despite the elaborate preparations made for it, including the drafting of relevant declarations and documents, and despite the fact that all the administrativeand technical requirements had been met. Iraq had earlier sent out invitations to all heads of State or Government of countries of the movement and, in fact, had received answers accepting the invitation from the great major¬ity of them. Thus, Iraq honored all its obligations towards the movement and the Seventh Conference. 71. What should, however, be emphasized in this regard is that Iraq did not, from the outset, present its bid to host that non-aligned conference in order to gain publicity or as a national objective. Rather, Iraq's initiative came to underscore its international good name, not to create one by so doing. Iraq viewed the matter with a sense of responsibility and concern for the well-being of the movement, both at present and in the future, for non aligned principles constitutes a major component of our foreign policy and we believe that the strength and dignity of Iraq are identi¬cal to the strength and dignity of the movement. 72. Being proud of our commitment to the movement and anxious about its future and the development of its capability to face world events and in order to avoid possible division in the ranks of the movement's members, we declared our intention not to insist on holding the Seventh Conference in Iraq, as we recog¬nized that some circles within the movement took seriously, either in good faith or otherwise, the black¬mail and attempts at obfuscation carried out by Iran. There is no doubt that Iran's behavior simply demonstrates the short-sightedness of the rulers of Iran and their ignorance concerning the importance of the non-aligned movement and their lack of belief in ft. One cannot rule out the possibility that Iran's objective is to undermine and weaken the movement and to diminish its role as an effective Power in inter¬national relations by resorting to blackmail and threats as well as by encouraging the enemies of the movement to belittle it. 73. The non-aligned movement considers the ques¬tion of Palestine to be its problem and is committed to supporting the struggle of the Palestinian people to realize their inalienable national rights. It empha¬sizes that that struggle is one of the responsibilities of the non-aligned countries. Obviously, the question o? Palestine is at the core of the Middle East problem and represents the essence of the Arab-Zionist con¬flict. Unless a just, comprehensive and lasting solu-tion is found that is acceptable to the Palestinian people and satisfies their national aspirations, peace cannot be established in the area and a state of con¬tinuous conflict will persist, with all its continuing implications for world peace and security. Meanwhile, lot it be known that might no matter how over¬whelming, will not dampen the zeal of patriotism and will not suppress the revolutionary urge of the people. Therefore, to achieve genuine peace in the area, the Zionist entity must withdraw unconditionally from all occupied Arab territories and the estab¬lished inalienable national rights of the Palestinian people, including the right to return to their homeland, Palestine, should be restored as should their properties, their right to exercise self-determination and their right to establish their own independent, fully sover¬eign State. Moreover, Jerusalem must be recognized as part of occupied Palestinian territory and the Zionist entity must withdraw from it. There should also be recognition of the PLO, the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, and it should be enabled to exercise its right to participate in all conferences and activities relating to the question of Palestine on an equal footing and standing with all parties concerned. Further, existing Zionist settle¬ments on Arab territories must be removed, and the policy of establishing new ones there must be discon¬tinued. In addition, confiscation of Arab land must cease. 74. The latest form of brutal aggression by the military forces of the Zionist entity was the war of mass annihilation against the PLO and the helpless, homeless refugees in camps in various parts of Leba¬non. That war was launched in the first week of last June and continued through the last week of August. There then took place a massacre such as has never been witnessed in modem times. Those racist mali¬cious forces brought destruction to all the towns and villages of southern Lebanon and slaughtered tens of thousands of innocent Palestinians and Lebanese, who were buried under debris in mass graves. Those forces wrought devastation and havoc in that part of Lebanon, which is an independent neutral State, a founding member of both the United Nations and of the non-aligned movement. The forces of the Zionist enemy unleashed the burning fire of its military machine from land, air and sea at Palestinian refugee camps, killing unarmed children, women and the elderly, destroying plantations and reducing buildings and houses to rubble. Those forces pursued their crimes in west Beirut and its suburbs, exposing their latent hatred to the extent of cutting off water, medi¬cine, food and electricity from the residents while bombarding the city with heavy artillery and con¬tinuing air and sea attacks for many hours daily for several weeks. Many shells and rockets were fired indiscriminately at residential communities and civilian installations, causing the loss of thousands of human lives; it will not be possible to assess the amount of property destroyed for a long time. 75. The barbaric invading forces did not stop at genocide and brutal acts committed throughout Lebanon. They also organized a massacre in Beirut on 16 September 1982. Over 3,000 unarmed Palestinians were annihilated for no reason except that they were Palestinians. This racist massacre outraged the entire world, including even the traditional friends of the perpetrators. The damage at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps is a disgraceful stain on the history of mankind that will never be forgotten. The inter¬national community is called upon to take, through the international organs of the United Nations, the appropriate deterrent measures, to condemn cate¬gorically the actions and policies of the Zionist entity, to impose sanctions that are proportionate to its horrifying acts, and to consider seriously disqualifying it as a Member of the Organization, for its presence here constitutes a challenge to the Charter as well as to all human norms and conduct. 76. The Foreign Minister of the Zionist entity declared on 6 September 1982 that the condition which his Government set for withdrawal of its forces from southern Lebanon and the termination of its military occupation of the area was agreement by Lebanon to sign a peace treaty with the Zionist entity. He also said that certain agreements needed to be introduced regarding southern Lebanon, to ensure the security of the State of Israel. At the same time, the Zionist Minister of Defense declared that the invading forces would remain deployed in southern Lebanon for at least 15 years. In our view, such a condition and determination illustrates the intention of the Zionist entity to proceed with its expansionist plan of annexing parts of southern Lebanon, including control of the Litani River and other water resources, as one further step towards the realization of Zionist ambitions for the establishment of Greater Israel. 77. Hence, in view of this grave situation, we believe that the United Nations should live up to its respon¬sibilities and stand firmly by the side of Lebanon as a free, independent and fully sovereign State and a founding Member of the United Nations, and should ensure the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the Zionist entity behind the Lebanese borders. Also, the Security Council, in particular, should take appropriate action to eliminate aggression against Lebanon should the Zionist entity refuse to withdraw immediately and unconditionally from Lebanese territory. In our view, the appropriate action which the Security Council should take is the imposition of deterrent sanctions against the Zionist entity. Fore¬most among such sanctions should be the suspension of its membership in the Organization and the imposition of a comprehensive embargo against it. This would, of course, require a show of will by the United States to act seriously in the exercise of its responsibilities as a great Power claiming to have an interest in the question of security and peace and alleging concern for the good name of the United Nations. It is indeed high time for the American Administration to recognize- that its policy towards the Arab Zionist conflict are not serve the interests of the American people and is in contradiction with their renowned traditions. Thus it is incumbent upon the United States Government to uphold justice and equity and to display courage and political will, free from the pressure of the Zionist minority. 78. The danger of the Zionist entity in the Middle East is not limited to aggression committed at such time and place as it might deem proper in order to achieve its colonial expansionist goals, thus jeopar¬dizing peace in the area and impeding the development programmes required for the resurgence of the Arab nation and its economic and social progress. In fact it goes beyond all that to threaten to continue its intensive effort in developing the Zionist nuclear program for military purposes and using it against the Arab countries. It is no longer a secret that the Zionist entity has now acquired a number of nuclear bombs and weapons, with the relevant systems to direct and deliver them against any part of the Arab world. It is indeed regrettable that no great Power has paid serious attention to this imminent danger which threatens more than the Middle East. The great Powers cared neither about the non-accession by the Zionist entity to the Treaty on the Non- Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons nor about its non¬compliance with the Treaty safeguards. Furthermore, the Zionist entity refused to allow IAEA to carry out inspection measures in regard to the Zionist nuclear reactors and programmes. Thus the Zionists were encouraged by this to escalate and intensify their aggression against the Arab nation, as they had learned from repeated experience that any aggres¬sion committed by them would pass without serious attention being paid to it by the great Powers, espe¬cially the United States of America, and would not result in any sanctions or other practical action, regardless of the dimensions of the aggression and even if it involved human loss. 79. The clearest evidence proving the deliberate cover-up of the repeated Zionist acts of aggression by some great Powers and their failure to shoulder their responsibilities was the raid by Zionist planes of American manufacture on 7 June 1981 on the Iraqi nuclear installations, despite the fact that those instal¬lations, as certified by IAEA, were meant for strictly peaceful purposes and were subject to regular inter¬national inspection. 80. Iraq firmly adheres to the principles of the Charter which call for the policy of the charter which use of force, settlement of international dispute by peaceful means and non-interference in the domestic affairs of other countries. Although Iraq strove to establish good relations with Iran after the fall of the Shah's regime, all cur endeavors were in vain in persuading rulers of Iran to cease their acts of provocation, aggression ant3 interference in our internal affairs, as well as to fulfill their international obligations towards Iraq. 81. That remained our approach in dealing with Iran even after it started its armed aggression against Iraq on 4 September 1980. Since that day, the Presi¬dent of the Republic of Iraq. Mr. Saddam Hussein, has stressed the fact that we look forward to enjoying relations of good-neighborliness with the countries of the region, including in particular Iran, and that Iraq has neither any territorial ambitions in Iran nor any intention of waging war against it, nor does Iraq intend to expand the scope of the conflict with Iran beyond the defense of its rights and sovereignty. But the armed Iranian aggression against us has continued at an intense level to this very day, while the Iranian regimehas declined to respond in a spirit of constructive co-operation to any of the international endeavors to settle the dispute and has turned down all the peaceful initiatives put forward by Iraq to reach a just and honorable solution. The rulers of Iran favor the continuance of aggression, and that can only be interpreted as evidence of their desire for expansion at the expense of our country; as at first stage, to be followed by Iran's overrunning the Arab countries of the Gulf region, including Saudi Arabia, for the purpose of colonial expansion and the con¬solidation of a reactionary regime and in order even¬tually to force our region back into the Dark Ages, in which racism and religious intolerance would reign supreme. 82. Our peace initiatives with Iran were submitted at a meeting of the Security Council on 12 July of this year, at which meeting the Council adopted resolution 3 64 (1982). Iraq welcomed that resolution, whereas Iran rejected it. It is well known that between the eve of the adoption of that resolution and 30 July the Iranian regime launched a series of massive military acts of aggression against Iraqi territory to the east of Basra, an account of which is contained in docu¬ment A/37/428. It should be recalled here that the Arab countries took a unified position in support of Iraq at the Twelfth Arab Summit Conference held in Fez early this September, after the expansionist intentions of the Iranian regime had become crystal¬lized in a tangible fashion. The Arab Summit Con¬ference adopted a clear and firm decision expressing the Arab countries' support for and solidarity with Iraq and their willingness to implement the Common Defense Pact of the members of the League of Arab States. The entire region would be in a new and dangerous situation were the Iranian regime to proceed further with its plan. We should like to draw the attention of the world public to th s development, which is obviously fraught with potential dangers. The full responsibility for the consequences of a possible confrontation between Iran and the Arab States as a whole would therefore be Iran's alone. 83. At a time when efforts to settle the dispute and stop the fighting are being made by the United Nations, which is a source of hope in all peace-loving nations, the Iranian regime is carrying out a further act of aggression against the central sector of Iraq. By the morning of 1 October 1982 Iran had made four large- scale attacks. The Security Council discussed this matter on 4 October and unanimously adopted resolution 322 (1982), in which the Council recalled its two earlier resolutions and urged Iran once again to act in accordance with the principles of the United Nations by settling the dispute by peaceful means and emulating Iraq's co-operative attitude to the Council. 84. My delegation will explain to the General Assem¬bly in detail the peace initiatives Iraq has taken in order to reach a just and honorable settlement of the dispute with Iran when the Assembly debates agenda item 134, entitled Consequences of the prolongation of the armed conflict between Iran and Iraq . At this juncture, I should like to say that Iraq has given adequate proof of its good intentions and of its. Sincere desire to see peace and security estab-lished m our region, which is of significant importance to international peace and security. The rejection by the rulers of Iran of all peace initiatives indicates that they lack a sense of responsibility for security and stability in the area, and this could exacerbate the disturbances and tension there, lead to an escalation of the conflict and jeopardize international peace and security. I would also like to stress that should Iran continue its intransigence and its rejection of the call for peace and persist in its aggression, Iraq would inevitably have to resist that aggression by all the means available to it in the exercise of its legitimate right to self-defense. In the mean time, we believe that the Iraq-Iran dispute warrants the General Assembly's maximum attention and care, since it represents a test of its will and of the strength of the Charter. By the same token, any success in this endeavor will enhance the chances of peace and will prevent further deterioration of the situation in that sensitive and dangerous part of the world. 85. Racial crimes, including the policies of Zionism and political doctrines based on racial discrimination are still being committed in many parts of the world, in spite of the fact that such crimes violate the Charter, the principles of non-alignment and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Although the Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination is now drawing towards its end, and although it has produced some positive results, certain regimes—especially the Zionist entity and the racist minority regime in South Africa—still refuse to accede to the International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of In this regard, a more serious position against them should be adopted, with stronger condemnation, in order that the peoples of South Africa and Namibia, along with all the liberation movements in Africa and Latin America, may achieve their aspirations to freedom, inde¬pendence and self-determination. 36. It is important to recall that the reactionary racist regime in South Africa violates all values, and that it was owing to its antagonistic stand that the most recent meeting, held at Geneva, on the imple¬mentation of the United Nations plan for the inde¬pendence of Namibia proved abortive. We must also mention the conclusions of the International Conference on Sanctions against South Africa, which was held in Paris in 1981, and commend the declara¬tions it adopted/ which, in keeping with the Charter, reject racist concepts. 87. Furthermore, we should like to draw attention to the fact that a number of Western countries, and the Zionist entity, boycotted that humanitarian con¬ference. While the great majority of the States Mem¬bers of the United Nations supported General Assem¬bly resolution 36/172, which calls for comprehensive mandatory sanctions under Chapter VII of the Charter against the racist regime in Pretoria, the same group of Western countries and the Zionist entity continue to take negative positions. That confirms their collusion with the racist regime in South Africa and their deal¬ings with it in the economic, trade, diplomatic and military areas, as well as the development and co-ordination of joint action with that regime in the nuclear field, including the production of enriched uranium. Obviously, such behaviour on the part of Western countries and the Zionist entity constitutes a flagrant violation of Security Council resolution 418 (1977) and of the relevant General Assembly resolu¬tions, and encourages the racialist regime in Pretoria to pursue its policy of aggression against the peoples of Namibia and South Africa, and to disregard any action, even if adopted by the overwhelming majority of Members of the United Nations. 88. The practices of the racial minority regime in Pretoria are not limited only to the peoples of Namibia and South Africa, but also include the artificial creation of crises and other conditions, as well as the recruit¬ment of mercenaries to commit military aggression against many independent peaceful African States, especially Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Swaziland and Seychelles. Apart from violating the security and sovereignty of the countries of the region, such acts of aggression always result in the killing of large numbers of unarmed civilians and poor peasants and in the destruction of their homes and farms. 89. We therefore appeal to the international commu¬nity, and especially to the Western countries which are permanent members of the Security Councill, not to block the efforts made to put an end to the aggres¬sion by the racial minority in South Africa, through the imposition of legitimate sanctions against that regime under Chapter VII of the Charter. 90. The world economy is passing through a very serious stage, in which a heavy burden is being placed on the developing countries in particular. The dimen¬sions of the situation are reflected in: receding eco¬nomic activity and growth; increasing balance-of- payments deficits in the developing countries and a decline in the prices of their export commodities; rising unemployment figures; monetary inflation; the adverse effects of high rates of interest in the world markets on foreign loans to the developing coun¬tries; a weakening of the flow of multilateral assist¬ance on favorable conditions; dwindling supplies of foodstuffs; increasing protectionism exercised by the industrial countries against exports of the developing countries; harsh and unfavorable conditions for the transfer of technology to the developing world; deliberate control of raw material prices with adverse effects on the terms of trade of the developing countries; and the recurrent application of irrespon¬sible concepts, such as gradualism, selectivity and discrimination, which are being introduced by the industrial nations in their trade transactions with the developing world. AH those factors impede the efforts made by the developing countries to secure their economic growth, to continue interest payments on their foreign debts and to meet their basic needs for imported goods. 91. The developing countries sought seriously and sincerely to maintain a constructive dialogue with the industrialized countries in a bid to restructure the world economy on just and balanced terms. But the industrial nations were not responsive to such endeavors and initiatives. On the contrary, some of them even opposed any international action to improve the world economic situation. Among the vital issues raised by the developing countries was the initiation of global economic talks within the frame¬work of the United Nations. Ever since the eleventh special session of the General Assembly, held in 1980, obstacles have remained in the way of initiating those important and essential negotiations. There¬fore, Iraq and all other developing countries support the call for starting those talks as early as possible, and we urge all States that oppose them to reconsider their positions in the interests of us all. 92. The Group of 77 this year submitted constructive and moderate proposals to resolve the question of starting such negotiations, but those proposals did not suit some industrial nations. 93. The problems of debts and cash liquidity which face the developing countries have become so dan¬gerous and pressing as to require an overall solution. In our judgment, the industrial countries bear great responsibility in this connection. At their recent annual meeting the World Bank and IMF recommended some measures to alleviate the financial burden weigh¬ing on the developing countries. Those measures, however, do not go far in addressing the essence of the problem, a problem which is due basically to the failure of the existing world monetary system to develop along with the changes that have been taking place since the Second World War. Moreover, those measures constituted a mere reaction to the crisis, which is assuming intolerable dimensions, and there fore cannot be considered as remedial measures in the true sense of the word. 94. Iraq was among the first countries to diagnose the nature of the economic problems that are plaguing the world. That is why the President of the Republic of Iraq has proposed the establishment of a world fund for long-term assistance to developing countries. The proposed fund would help them to cope both with the effects of inflation passed on to them by the industrial countries, and with the increasing bill for their oil imports. This vital plan, which was wel¬comed at the Sixth Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries, held at Havana in 1979, was the subject of extensive discussion by experts of the Group of 77 at a meeting they held at Baghdad in March 1982. An outline of the fund was drawn up and later approved by the co-ordination and follow-up Committee of the Group of 77, which met at Manila in August this year. That Committee decided to recommend the inclusion of the Iraqi proposal in the list of items to be discussed in the global negotiations. We now trust that the industrial¬ized countries will seriously consider this plan, which we hope will eventually be translated into action. 95. Economic co-operation among the developing countries has undoubtedly become more important in recent years. Iraq, as a developing country, views this matter as a major component of its foreign policy, and it contributes to many regional and international funds. We also try to help to enhance and promote such co-operation through bilateral agreements. I should like to recall in this regard that the High- Level Conference on Economic Co-operation among Developing Countries held in Caracas in 1981 approved an overall program for such co-operation and that the developing countries are in the process of implementing it. 96. We catll upon all the industrial nations and the international institutions to take all possible action to ensure a constant and increasing flow of assistance to the developing world to help to maintain that co-operation. At this point we must emphasize, however, that the expansion of economic co-operation among the developing countries does not relieve the industrial countries of their responsibilities towards the devel¬oping nations.