YouSaid · the spoken record

Gregoire

THE RECORD WRITES THIS SPEAKER AS GREGOIRE

lines on the record: 56
first: 1967-09-24
most recent: 1968-09-24
sittings or episodes: 2
sources: un-general-debate

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“That is the voice we want to hear, and that is the voice that we should like to hear again speaking with all the brilliance of its great deeds.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“Firm in that faith, we find it inconceivable that the fate meted out by the League of Nations in 1921 to a humane suggestion made by Fridtjof Nansen regarding five million pounds sterling intended to relieve several million starving people can recur in the United Nations in 1968 with regard to a suggestion made by a great-hearted man and once again concerning the world’s poor and disinherited. 114. If such were the case, I should have to ask again the question I asked last year [1568th meeting]: "What use is the United Nations?", and answer it with a reply that would be the opposite of the hope I had tried to manifest. 115. The United Nations: the voice of mankind, the voice of man, the universal voice, the voice of justice and of peace.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“To return to our vocation: it will be fulfilled through a mission in which we are determined not to fail: that of permanently fostering natural impulses towards goodness and greatness wherever they may spring up; that of proclaiming that, since fear of the freedom of others destroys oppressors, hope will always inspire those whom oppression seeks to crush; that of joining with those who grant the greatest degree of real freedom in order to bring an end to the present dangerous situation in which there is neither real peace nor open war; and lastly that of refuting the contention of those who preach the Organization’s total incapacity to reform its institutions and to adapt them to the demands of those great basic principles. 113.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“Since in the end the law or relativity always takes effect, the United Nations would eventually consist only of some large nations that would settle among themselves the fate of all those who had been left out. 111. That is why I say that within this Hall the small, the very small, the smallest, are important, even if their importance is only derived from human values and from the spiritual wealth created by outstanding personalities, rather than from a large mass of less gifted inhabitants. For we must not forget that on what we might call here the “great scales of peace or war" those poor nations somehow represent the few ounces that can quite naturally tip the balance in favour of well-being for all mankind. 112.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“Medici, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy: it is the principle of our Organization’s universality, a principle to which must be joined that of the autonomy of peoples who have attained independence. 109. It would be highly dangerous to make admission to the United Nations depend upon some numbers, agreed to by a majority of Members, setting the low limit of size; since some interested countries could always change that limit. The figure of one million inhabitants, for example, might perhaps be found insufficient by some nation with 20 million; the figure of 20 million might be too small for another with 50 million; and again 50 million, according to the circumstances, would be too small in the eyes of a great nation with a population of 200 million. 110.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“I am deliberately referring here to a well-known fable of La Fontaine — or, if you prefer, of Aesop — to remind you of certain tendencies to exclude the very small, the too small, from this Organization in order to reserve the exercise of the right of membership solely for the great nations. However, if henceforth that right were to be based on the criterion of size alone — defined by geographical dimensions, by population, or even by national income per caput — we should be venturing into the realm of despotism, of that despotism that could very easily endanger the fundamental principle of our Organization. 108. That fundamental principle was mentioned this morning [1687th meeting] by Mr.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“106. That is the stand taken by a very small nation whose words may seem bold, but whose vocation is as evident as its impartiality in the conduct of world affairs is absolute. That vocation leads us from time to time, along with all other small nations, to become the voice of conscience for the great Powers. Unfortunately it does not spare us from being compelled at times to feel that shame which the strong too readily ignore; nor does it mean that, when the influence of the great Powers takes the form of a prevailing humanism, achieved peace and guaranteed freedom, we shall eschew that influence. We are countering that motto which those same great Powers are too prone to apply - “Might is right” — with the motto that very humbly says to all the prideful: “One often needs someone smaller than oneself”. 107.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“In that chain of deeds and misdeeds the guilt seems to me to be equally divided. But I feel it my duty to denounce any ideology that inspires outrages against humanity; to indict the hand that arms itself the better to annihilate; to indict the hand that arms another so that it can take part in the warfare of third parties; to indict the speculators who bring about the deaths of millions by dabbling in poverty and misfortune; to blame our own shortcomings within this great United Nations family and to warn those who, albeit Members in good standing, respect neither the principles nor the decisions of the Organization; to shame those who, by refusing to fulfil all the necessary conditions for membership, risk crushing the Organization under the weight of the disdain they create among men already prepared to see United Nations impotence as the disgrace of the final years of the twentieth century.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“In that case, is not the neologism “bolshe-tsarism” apt for precisely describing the actual situation in that part of the world where the neo-colonialism used against evolved nation is aimed at making the boundaries of what it calls its “sphere of influence” congruent with its national political borders? 104. Spheres of influence! An open sesame that entails the treatment of many regions of the world as no more than the protectorates and expected legacies of one particular super-Power. However, we do not want to be influenced from either the right or the left, since that kind of influence means nothing but dependency, supervised freedom, and solidarity in political misdeeds that are manifested by cannon fire and the building of gallows. 105. I shall refrain from citing those whom I might wish to declare guilty.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“What is an obviously imposed solidarity worth? And who would still dare compare it to a chain from which, we are informed, not one link can be removed, when it concerns still living nations and not dead things? Is not that metaphor of nations forged into a single chain a revolting illustration of the status of those nations, welded together in so-called solidarity? 103. In that double-talk, the concept of imperialism has in truth completely changed its content, since it has become a sort of alibi for those who have learnt to replace open genocide by a slow and effective kind of asphyxiation that enables territorial aggrandizement to take place by wiping from the map certain small nations until they have completely vanished from men’s memory.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“What is the real meaning of the term in that region of the world where the stronger party is increasing its war potential and where, backed by tanks, planes and machine guns, it uses the word in its basic sense, depriving the weaker party of all means of resistance? 101. Peace! Coexistence! How in the light of these words can we explain the myriad attempts at intimidation, the enormous political and military blackmail, the increasingly frantic preparations for war — to be waged preferably by third parties — and the acts of aggression that are ostensibly undertaken, to guard against any eventuality by creating a buffer zone that will tomorrow become the graveyard of the subjugated peoples? 102. Socialist friendship and solidarity! What is that friendship whose bonds are devoid of spontaneity and sincerity?”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“Since words are becoming increasingly devoid of meaning, it seems to me natural that public opinion should have little faith in those who employ words; for the public rather quickly discovers that actions completely concealed by words are the direct opposite of what those words try to make them. Need I recall those actions here? 99. Human rights! What rights are involved when important men are kidnapped and when the route they have chosen to travel is changed and passengers, with their pilots, are constrained to play the dangerous game of a unique kind of piracy, under threat of arms? 100. Disarmament!”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“For decades now we have been forced to witness the progressive debasement of truth, whose meaning is being continually adulterated by distorting the real state of affairs by means of ideological trickery and by the foisting, by force, of a false view of reality on people doomed to suffer the disastrous effects of incessantly repeated misrepresentation. 97. That ideology conceives of itself as absolute and therefore predominant. While preserving a political strategy that has been rigidly defined from its inception, it enjoys posing as a constantly evolving dynamism whereas, by means of a continually-shifting tactic based on distortion of facts, it only interprets data in a partial way and thereby lays traps that are incessantly being reset to ensnare honest men, who will always be men of good will. 98.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“Since those who have preceded me have done so very well, I shall not repaint a picture of the gloomy events that have marked the year’s passage and are so out of key with the high status mankind pretends to have attained intellectually, technically, socially and spiritually. In obvious regression, the tank with its guns has come forth to make the decisive argument for brutal violence; it has not been and it will never be the profound embodiment of a nobly human stand. Quite the contrary. 96. That being said, we must unfortunately expect to hear it answered in a language full of double meanings, a language that some speakers employ in an attempt to have the political last word whenever their duplicity is mentioned.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“93. Although it had no immediate spectacular results, it is to the credit of the Conference that it recognized the need to situate the problem before it within the framework of a world-wide development strategy and to define more clearly both the responsibilities of the industrialized countries and those of the developing countries. 94. Last year, speaking from this rostrum before this nearly world-wide audience, and rising above a semi-tacit pessimism, I attempted to set forth the guiding principles that embody the still undisputed value of our Organization. Am I not today impelled to recant and deny my words, since obviously all my hopes have been dashed by the violent events that have occurred in defiance of our Charter and of the humanism of which we ate so proud? 95.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“However, we are aware that the formidable problem of the under-privileged awaits a solution towards which every industrialized country is in duty bound to make an increasing contribution, taking heart from the determination of the developing countries to make the best use of that assistance for economic, technical and cultural purposes. 92. Of course, it must be agreed that the immediate results obtained by the second session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development have been rather modest. The instances in which the requests formulated in the Charter of Algiers by the developing countries have become concrete facts are all too few. However, I believe it would be an exaggeration to maintain that the Conference accomplished nothing but a more solemn exposition of what had already for some time been recognized as necessary.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“The struggle against poverty and the efforts to create everywhere living conditions more in keeping with human dignity, the establishment of a greater social justice among all nations, both rich and poor — those, in the long run, are what my Government sees as the basic conditions for the safeguarding of peace in the world. 91. Its difficult financial situation notwithstanding, the Government of Luxembourg this year made a considerable effort to increase substantially its contribution to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). We intend to continue along that path during the coming years, taking into account, of course, our limited means.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“That is the sole attitude worthy of those who are alive to their immense responsibilities towards all mankind. In recent years we in Europe — in the East and in the West — have come a long and difficult way to bring our peoples together. The great development in human and political contacts, in cultural and economic exchanges, seemed to mark the beginning of relations of greater trust among States. It would be a tragedy for Europe as well as for the entire world if the fruit of so many arduous efforts were destroyed. 90. However, the concern we feel at the deterioration of the international situation must not distract us from the other great task incumbent on the United Nations, that of building with perseverance a better world. Here, assistance to developing countries has pride of place.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“In that connexion I should like to join those who, following the example of our Secretary-General, have refused to accept the thesis according to which certain provisions of the United Nations Charter provide the Soviet Union with the right to intervene unilaterally by force in the Federal Republic of Germany. I feel impelled also to denounce the biased defamation campaign being waged against the Federal Government with the all too evident intention of turning it into both a scapegoat and a scarecrow. Such procedures can only revive old bitterness and thereby perpetuate discord and distrust in Europe. 89. Therefore I cannot refrain from joining my voice with those of so many others in addressing a solemn appeal to the great Powers to reconsider their policy and to decide deliberately in favour of law and freedom.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“The Conference of the Eighteen-Nation Committee on Disarmament, which has just ended its summer session at Geneva, did not achieve any concrete results. How can any progress in that particular area be achieved in an atmosphere of destruction and fear? 88. The Soviet Union holds the key to the problem. The hope for a return to trust through a reduction of tension will be a vain hope so long as the occupation troops remain in Czechoslovakia and so long as the Soviet Union continues to bring the threat of intervention to bear on other countries as well.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“We sincerely hope that events in Czechoslovakia will not compromise the entry of the Treaty into force. 86. However, the Treaty on non-proliferation, if it is ratified and implemented by a sufficient number of States, particularly those States that are already on the threshold of nuclear development, can only be a beginning. The final responsibility still rests with the nuclear Powers. We therefore fully support the initiatives taken during the recent Conference of Non-Nuclear-Weapon States to invite the atomic Powers to enter without delay into talks designed to put an end to nuclear weapons tests and to halt the development of those weapons. 87. Given the present state of affairs, however, we must guard against undue hope.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“Despite some events that take us back to the most sombre days of the past, we, along with countries that share our ideals, want to continue with patience and firmness along the only practicable road, the road to détente, We remain convinced that the reduction of tensions, along with the widening of areas of understanding and agreement, can in time bring about the conditions in which settlement of the great problems dividing the world will at last become possible. Mankind’s survival will depend on that settlement. 85. Luxembourg signed the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons [resolution 2373 (XXII)], despite its serious imperfections and omissions, precisely because it is an important forward step towards disarmament and is consistent with the strengthening of security and peace.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“Affecting as it does the atmosphere of trust that has been developing in Europe for the past several years, that crisis can only be relieved by the withdrawal of the occupation troops and by the complete re-establishment of Czechoslovakian independence. The operation by the Warsaw Pact countries has rent the veil of illusions and has at one blow destroyed many hopes that had been built up over the long years of untiring efforts towards détente and towards a better understanding between East and West. 84. Faced with what is known as the “balance of terror”, mankind has no choice.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“However, in addition to humanitarian assistance, the efforts recently and so courageously undertaken under the auspices of the Emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie, to end the armed struggle must be continued. The United Nations must in its turn exert all its influence towards the working out of a lasting solution with which all the population can agree. 83. However, of all the events that have occurred in recent years the invasion of Czechoslovakia is the one that may deal the hardest blow to the cause of peace. That invasion is a flagrant violation of the law of nations and of the United Nations Charter. The illegal occupation of Czechoslovakia has provoked an international crisis, both politically and military, of extreme gravity.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“It is unthinkable that the United Nations should turn its back on the humanitarian task of bringing to an end the nameless sufferings being wrought upon civilian populations, even if to do so it must bring up the matter at this very meeting. 82. A large number of countries and international organizations have provided generous assistance. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the International Red Cross have played an important and valuable part in procuring food and medical supplies for the victims under extremely difficult conditions. It is our duty to appeal to the Federal Government of Nigeria to facilitate the direct shipment of that assistance and to guarantee the personal safety of all inhabitants, especially women and children.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“That courageous political action enabled the Paris talks to get under way; and we are hopeful that those talks will soon lead to genuine negotiations. 79. The Government of Luxembourg remains convinced that only a negotiated solution of the conflict can bring a just peace to that sorely-tried region. That is why I am renewing my appeal to the United Nations to exert all its influence towards speeding a political settlement of the war. 80. Whereas the conflicts in Viet-Nam and in the Middle East have been going on for many years, two no less grievous tragedies have saddened the world in the past few months. 81. Although the civil war that is raging in Nigeria most closely affects all the African States, the world conscience cannot remain silent in the face of that terrible internecine struggle.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“In those circumstances it is the bounden duty and in the vital interest of the countries directly concerned to co-operate constructively with the efforts being made by Mr. Jarring towards finally establishing a method of reaching a common ground of understanding. Repeated resort to force will only delay and ultimately endanger peace. 77. In Viet-Nam, too, human sufferings and material destruction have gone on ever since the General Assembly last met a year ago. The Vietnamese people, already so sorely tried, is still suffering the awful consequences of pitiless military confrontation. 78. It is true that the United States made an important move towards peace when on 31 March it limited the bombing of North Viet—Nam.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“Gunnar Jarring, no visible progress whatsoever has yet been achieved since the Security Council’s unanimous adoption on 22 November 1967 of the resolution [242(1967)] enumerating the few principles that can lead to a final settlement, it being understood that no territorial gain achieved by force can be condoned. 75. That resolution has the dual advantage of providing at the outset for an equitable solution and of defining the goals that the interested parties themselves, I believe, no longer question. On the contrary, they unfortunately remain in disagreement as to the practical way in which that resolution can be implemented. After more than a year of equivocations, acts of violence, surprise attacks and reprisals on both sides, the differences of opinion between Israel and the Arab countries are as deep and explosive as ever. 76.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“The representatives of the States that drafted the United Nations Charter at San Francisco in June 1945 intended it in the first place to safeguard international peace and security. However, notwithstanding the hopes that have been formulated by all the Governments represented in this Hall today, war continues to rage throughout the world. The bloody tragedies that are rending Viet-Nam, the Middle East and Nigeria conceal unspeakable human sufferings. An extremely serious situation has been brought about in Czechoslovakia. 74. Only one of those problems—that of the Middle East—is explicitly included in the agenda of the current session. Now, despite the unfailingly patient efforts made by the Secretary-General’s Special Representative in the Middle East, Mr.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“71. First of all, I want to join the speakers who have preceded me at this rostrum in offering my warm congratulations to Mr. Arenales, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Guatemala, on his election to the office of President of the twenty-third regular session of the General Assembly. His long experience in serving the United Nations is for us an especially valuable assurance at this juncture when he is succeeding our Romanian colleague Mr. Corneliu Manescu, who led with impartiality, tact and skill the arduous and lengthy discussions held in the Assembly over the past year. 72. I should like next to pay an admiring and sympathetic tribute to the Secretary-General, U Thant. His untiring efforts to bring about an understanding among nations have unfortunately not been met with the eagerly-awaited success. 73.”
1968-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 23 (1968)
“And to the question what use is the United Nations, we must reply: for precisely that, for that uninterrupted exchange, established and intensified so that ultimately something admirable may come out of it. Or again; What is the United Nations good for? Well, it is good for serving: it serves mankind, all mankind, through the inexhaustible resources of a dynamic humanism, wholly attuned to the demands of the international community for peace, justice and increasing wellbeing. 82. That is our true profession of faith.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“But let him not stop with that single reminder; let him go all the way towards breathing life into the paragraphs, for a basic text which is a dead letter can all too easily engender still-born undertakings. That which was made for life should have life, through the mind and in the mind, so as to be capable of evolving with the living and adapting itself to the needs of the present day while serving the living. 80. In its highest manifestation, the wisdom of which I have been speaking delights in hearing wisdom spoken. Thus, the great and wise will, I hope, listen to the small and wise, and vice versa. This can easily be done here, in this great stock exchange of the wisdom of nations, where shares are traded at the highest price and on the widest scale. 81. Such, at least, could be our undertaking.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“However, where those three elements come together to form an integral whole, a wonderfully simple phenomenon occurs — the phenomenon of wisdom — and becomes effective in all its modest splendour. 78. This wisdom, however, affirms a law which no one, no man of real worth, can escape; the law that imposes and demands dialogue, a dialogue requiring the capacity to listen reasonably and courteously, that is to say with reason and goodwill, and also the capacity to make ourselves heard in the same fashion. 79. This, therefore, is the wisdom to which we must appeal, even, indeed especially, when we refer to the text of the United Nations Charter, if we are to derive the maximum benefit from it. Our Secretary-General is right to draw our attention, by the hallowed procedure, to Article 28 (2).”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“One cannot be substituted for another or for something else — truth, for example, cannot be replaced by falsehood, since falsehood is by nature porous and therefore ill-adapted to collecting and containing anything fluid — nor are we entitled to confuse reason with any sort of prejudice, even though that prejudice may be reasoned to the highest degree. We are not entitled to replace common sense with perfervid obstinacy inspired principally by mistakes. Wherever those three elements are not forthcoming, there can be no wisdom; there will certainly be nothing but a kind of caricature of wisdom, borrowing from hypocrisy some of the appearances of wisdom.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Of course, I could answer that it is wealth, that it is the moral and intellectual wealth which everyone thinks he has in abundance whereas it is not all that common, since in the real world, the tragic, everyday real world, it is the product most lacking. Naturally, that answer would not satisfy him. That is why — attempting to make myself understood through a metaphor — I usually answer that this wisdom is above all the sense of judgement, drawn up in equal measure — using truth as the bucket — from the deep well of sound reason and of innate common sense. 77. Those three elements — truth, reason and common sense — must unite in order for wisdom to prevail and express itself.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Therefore, their authority must have a basis; it must be based on wisdom. Active wisdom, however, is neither a virtue nor a quality derived from particular geographic or demographic conditions. It is acquired through the action of a fourth dimension, which is of the spirit. The smallest are not barred from attaining it, nor do the great ones necessarily possess it. And — I apologize for my digression — when in my own country I mention this wisdom, I am sometimes interrupted by one or other of my listeners who is quick to ask me: But that "what-do-you-call-it", that invisible and impalpable something to which you give the misleadingly promising name of "wisdom" — what is it, in fact?”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“If they choose to act as big brothers towards the small countries — of which my own is one — sometimes very kindly big brothers, perhaps there to protect us, they are certainly not entitled to misjudge the scope of their authority over us to the point of being dictatorial, nor to exploit the weakness of some and the territorial limitations of others for their own profit. Authority is not and can never be expressed by brute strength; it is reflected in an awareness of its responsibilities and a goodwill manifested in the way it guards in order to protect. In allowing these big brothers to play with matches, for example — a thing which is always prohibited, always forbidden to children — we are not completely sure that they are immune to every rash impulse calculated to set the world on fire. 76.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“The United Nations is not some kind of hospital for the seriously disabled, but a joint enterprise embracing all sound and vigorous efforts, physical as well as metaphysical, to achieve understanding among peoples; (9) To translate the great, universally accepted ideas enshrined in our Charter into the clear and precise language of action, instead of attempting secretly to realize our most sordid ulterior motives. 75. These are our responsibilities, everyone's responsibilities. But there are others. The very special responsibilities undertaken by those Powers that we call great, assumed before humanity and before history, seem to me to he as vexatious as they are immense. However, the rights of the great Powers are not limitless.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Let us draw up the list and examine them more closely: (1) To eliminate small wars in the same way as large wars, wherever they may occur, since even small wars have an Influence on our own national destiny; (2) To have all nations outlaw all guerrilla fighters, those who employ clandestine tactics and those who employ overt dialectics; (3) To replace everywhere physical weapons by diplomatic weapons, through the overwhelming strength of our good will; (4) To recognize that the task of international diplomacy consists above all in dispelling all illusions, including those being propagated within our own Organization; (5) To refrain from coming here to comment post facto on events from this rostrum, when our task is to gain — or to regain — control of those events; (6) To work unceasingly towards the elimination of fear and violence, whether arising out of our insecurity or related to racial conflicts; (7) To understand once and for all that unresolved problems, whether they be political, economic or social in nature, will pursue us relentlessly if we do not unanimously resolve to eradicate them for good; (8) To recognize that it is irrational to admit to membership in the United Nations artificially created, two-headed nations, when our mission calls for the basic unification — and not division — of everything that can by its nature be united, before its admission to the family of nations.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“When those who form public opinion deliberately create serious doubts as to our grounds for existence by asking, with all sorts of pessimistic implications: "What use is the United Nations?" — the headline of one newspaper article — then I am no longer able to conceal the uneasiness which comes of deep personal soul-searching. Are we still applying our Charter in the spirit of the great stirrings of heart and mind which created it? What are the principal rules of conduct embodied in it? Do we still accept those rules?”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“We are firm believers in the principle of self-determination and we cannot but deplore the situation prevailing in certain areas of the globe. 73. The hopes I have just expressed and the goals I have attempted very briefly to define presuppose the existence of two things: a sincerely universalist state of mind, to begin with, and next an instrument effectively adaptable to all situations. Where do we stand at present? That is what we should like to know; and it will not be the only question to he asked. 74. As a matter of fact, the publicity being given to the United Nations among the masses, who are still disposed to follow us, is a constant worry to me.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Governments will need for this the fullest support of an informed public opinion keenly aware of the basic importance of this problem. 71. The Government of Luxembourg intends to readapt its development aid policy, as regards both contributions to the various multilateral organizations and bilateral programmes. 72. Important as the material progress of mankind may be, it is not the only key to human happiness. For that reason, I feel I should consider briefly the question of human rights in the broadest sense. We attach great importance to the upholding and increasing of individual rights, to the protection of the family and to the elimination of all forms of discrimination based on race, philosophy or religion.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“The discussions have highlighted the seriousness of the problem, which is marked by extremely slow industrial progress in the developing countries, by the worsening of the world food situation, and by the population explosion. Even though some representatives of the countries concerned tend too readily to impute the responsibility for this state of affairs to the industrialized countries, it must be granted that development aid is insufficient. Far from reaching the level set by the General Assembly, it has unfortunately fallen off of late. 70. Yet whatever the specific economic difficulties facing the industrialized countries in other respects, it is their duty — and furthermore, it is in their interest — resolutely to tackle a problem which is vital for all mankind.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“It is of the utmost importance that all concerned continue to explore every possibility in order that the division of our continent may soon be remedied. 68. However, the search for a peaceful balance of power among States is not our ultimate goal. We must succeed in bringing about active co-operation among all States. And I should like to dwell for a moment on one of the aspects of that co-operation, namely, assistance to developing countries. My Government regards this as an essential condition for the future of world peace. It is the duty of each of us, within the limits of his resources, to make a substantial contribution to this cause. 69. The great task of development has already been the subject of innumerable statements in the United Nations.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“A great deal has already been accomplished in this direction, and for that we are gratified, while we continue to look forward to the time when the last obstacle, consisting of a combination of concepts and practices, both political and economic, is broken down and true freedom of movement and exchange, intellectual as well as commercial, can develop. 67. It is therefore in a constructive spirit that my Government views the evolution of European relations. The lessening of tension — which was atone time acute — is undoubtedly due to a relative equilibrium between the defence systems of two groups of States, but it is also due to their pressing need for peace; and it augurs well for a steady improvement in the relations between Eastern and Western Europe.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Only by coping with the quite abnormal situation resulting from the Second World War can the permanent consolidation of the eastern frontiers of Germany be brought about, thus allowing for the establishment of a stable and universally recognized territorial status in Central Europe. 66. That is undoubtedly the principal political problem within the context of Europe, but it is not the only change which must occur. It will in addition be necessary to liberalize our relations with the eastern European countries, with regard both to the movement of persons and to trade.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“For it is of the utmost importance in disarmament that progress be made on an equal footing in respect of both nuclear and conventional weapons. Many countries today see their security threatened by countries which are not nuclear Powers. 64. Real disarmament covering all categories of weapons seems to us feasible only if world political and economic conditions return to normal. 65. In Europe this depends both on disarmament and on the elimination of the political factors which have given rise to tension between East and West. The most important of these factors seems to me to be the German problem.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“However, the fact that the two major Powers were able to agree at Geneva to submit a joint text of a draft treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons must be hailed as an important step in the right direction, despite some outstanding problems for which a solution will have to be worked out. Although there is broad backing among the countries for such an agreement, the feeling is unfortunately not universal. Communist China, in particular, rejects this treaty, while continuing to implement a significant programme of nuclear tests. This is somewhat disturbing in the light of the well-known views of the Peking Government. 63. Although agreement on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons is a definite step towards the prohibition of nuclear weapons, it must be followed by other measures, particularly in the non-nuclear field.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Nevertheless, we feel that there is no cause for undue pessimism, inasmuch as the Organization should be able to cope pragmatically with the concrete problems which may arise. It is the duty of all Member States to support United Nations action aimed at peacekeeping. In our view, this means that the financial burden should be divided in an equitable manner among all States, according to criteria to be laid down, taking into account particularly the ability of Member States to pay. 62. The mention of peace-keeping leads me naturally to speak of disarmament. In this field we have made progress over the past year, To be sure, we are all disappointed that more was not accomplished.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“However, we do not despair of an over-all settlement being worked out, provided both parties give evidence of goodwill and mutual understanding. We shall wholeheartedly support any effort towards pacification, whether by the parties concerned or, failing that, by third States wishing to lend their good offices in this struggle. 60. Essentially as a rapid solution to the Middle East crisis and the war in Viet-Nam may be, it must not be allowed to obscure a wider problem: that of establishing peace on a world-wide basis. 61. Owing to deep differences of opinion on the constitutional problems involved, the peace-keeping activities of our Organization are far from having the cohesion and effectiveness we might wish.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)