YouSaid · the spoken record

Akinyemi

THE RECORD WRITES THIS SPEAKER AS AKINYEMI

lines on the record
107
first
1985-09-24
most recent
1987-09-24
sittings or episodes
3
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

  1. “The Organization therefore often looks on helplessly while wars break out and are fought for as long as the antagonists want. Collective security, which was predicated on a degree of consensus among the major Powers, has given way to a polarization of the world into two rival alliances each of which has developed the concept of security based on the competitive accumulation of nuclear weapons. As a result of this arms race, the world is faced with the ultimate peril of total destruction. For the first time in the history of the human race man has within his power and capability the means by which he could annihilate many times over the whole of life on earth. Rather than enhancing security, the accumulation of nuclear weapons has become the greatest source of global danger.”

    1985-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 40 (1985)

  2. “This responsibility does not rest with the big Powers alone; it rests with all of us. The primary purpose of the United Nations is the promotion and maintenance of international peace and security. In its 40 years of existence no world war has broken out. That is something worth cheering. However, there have been and still are several localized wars in many parts of the globe. These wars have claimed more lives than the Second World War. Moreover, they have been and are being fought in the Third World, in areas least able to afford the accompanying destruction and devastation. Even when the signs of the outbreak of such wars are seen, the United Nations, in particular the Security Council, is rendered incapable of taking preventive action in accordance with the Charter.”

    1985-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 40 (1985)

  3. “This fortieth session should be an opportunity for us all to demonstrate the political will that is the basic ingredient of revitalization. The permanent members of the Security Council, who, under the Charter, have the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, will particularly have to demonstrate the will to find a new approach more consonant with the universal hope reposed in the United Nations. The time is ripe for new initiatives to prevent this Organization from being paralyzed and to prevent cold-war suspicions and considerations from holding back the evolution of solutions to the pressing problems of mankind. Let us never despair of building bridges between protagonists. Let us never despair of thinking thoughts and dreaming dreams in an endeavor to bring sanity to the world.”

    1985-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 40 (1985)

  4. “We can continue along the present path of rendering the Organization increasingly ineffective and irrelevant to the crucial issues of our time. That is a choice that can lead only to catastrophe. Alternatively,, we can choose to revitalize the Organization, to enhance its effectiveness and to make it live up to the hopes conceived by the founding fathers. The requirement of survival dictates that we choose this second option. The United Nations must be revitalized and strengthened. For this to happen we have to confront collectively the political as well as the structural crises afflicting it. Since the Organization is a structure of our own creation and a tool in our own hands, it can be effective only to the extent that Members allow it to be.”

    1985-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 40 (1985)

  5. “These accomplishments, however, are overshadowed by the threat to human existence arising from super-Power nuclear rivalry, the unsettled political situation in almost every part of the world, and the constant decline in the economic condition of the majority of the world's population. Yet, the effectiveness of the United Nations to cope with these global problems seems to be at an all-time low. The Organization is being gripped by a paralysis which is indicative of the determination of some powerful Members to avoid the constraints of multilateralism, the more easily to be able to impose unilateral solutions to international problems The United Nations is at a cross-roads. Its Members are faced with two options.”

    1985-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 40 (1985)

  6. “My Government has already expressed its deep condolence to the Government and people of Mexico on the recent earthquake. May I, however, take this opportunity to appeal to the international community to show solidarity with Mexico in the true spirit of human brotherhood. Throughout the world the fortieth anniversary of the funding of the United Nations is being observed with mixed feelings. There is much to cheer and applaud in the record of the United Nations. Forty years after its founding, the world is much better off with, than without, the United Nations. The Organization has achieved a lot in the areas of decolonization, human rights, health, peacekeeping and humanitarian assistance. The specialized agencies in the system have improved the quality of life of millions of people throughout the world, within their areas of competence.”

    1985-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 40 (1985)

  7. “Mr. President, in the name of the Nigerian delegation, I would like to avail myself of this opportunity to congratulate the President warmly on his election to the presidency of the fortieth session of the General Assembly. His long and distinguished experience in the United Nations gives us confidence that he will most competently guide the deliberations of the Assembly. I wish him every success in the months ahead. I would also like to pay tribute to his predecessor, Ambassador Paul Lusaka, for the excellent manner in which he presided over the thirty-ninth session of the General Assembly. In the same vein, permit me, Mr. President, to express my thanks and appreciation to our distinguished Secretary-General, for his untiring efforts in the service of the international community.”

    1985-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 40 (1985)