YouSaid · the spoken record

KHOMAN

lines on the record: 389
first: 1959-09-24
most recent: 1971-09-24
sittings or episodes: 12
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

“To achieve this objective either in the process of negotiation or otherwise, one of the prerequisites to be borne in mind by the free nations is for them to remain constantly united and to show their firm determination. Failure to muster such unity or to show firmness may result in a superficial settlement entailing a transitory' peace which is fraught with no less grave danger to peace and security. 49. The vicious campaigns now being conducted to breed dissension and disunity among us are not completely devoid of usefulness.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Instead of adding further fuel to the flames by supplying more arms to the aggressors, a co- Chairman would better serve the cause of peace, and at the same time perform his part of the obligations, by using his influence to persuade Hanoi, the only unwilling party in this case, to come to the conference table. At any rate, the least that could be done would be to show support for the reconvening of such a conference. 48. In all these possibilities, even if negotiations could be initiated either directly or by an internationally arranged conference, a further step would still be to secure a just and durable settlement of the conflict.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Such a solution presupposes some form of negotiations and, above all, a sincere willingness by the parties involved to enter into negotiations. This the parties concerned may do directly on their own, but hitherto the negative attitude of Hanoi has precluded the likelihood of such direct discussion. A further alternative is a larger conference arranged by interested Governments for the settlement of this outstanding problem. In particular, the Geneva Conference on Indo-China may be reconvened to pave the way for a negotiated settlement. The first step in this direction would be for both co-Chairmen of the Geneva Conference to act as true peace-makers by fulfilling their avowed duties as co-Chairmen, and to forsake their role of ideological partners in the conflict.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“In the first place, hostilities may cease altogether when the aggressors, realizing the hopelessness of their adventure, discontinue their infiltration and intervention against their neighbours. They may be persuaded to adopt this course on finding that the cost of aggression, in terms of the deterioration of their well-being and even their subsistence, is far too high, and on realization of the fact that it is not possible for them to achieve their objective through the use of subversion and armed intervention. Indeed, those who are eager to see peace restored in Viet-Nam should join together in convincing the Hanoi régime of the futility of their venture, and persuading them that the peaceful approach is actually more beneficial. 47. Another possibility would appear to be negotiated settlement.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“With a few more grains of wisdom and perspicacity they should be able to realize that the solution to the war in Viet-Nam can never be found while the defenders of freedom are divided and disunited, but only if the latter succeed in closing their ranks and are determined to carry their gallant task to the end. For the aggressive régime of North Viet-Nam once had the taste of a victory snatched from a divided nation, and nothing can dissuade it from thinking that it can repeat the performance if it manages to sow doubts, dissension and disruption both within and among nations which stand in its way to conquest and domination. 46. In fact, the anatomy of the war in Viet-Nam can he analysed into various elements.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Unlike the Hanoi régime, which is unwilling to leave the war-path, they ardently desire to see the war brought to an end, provided that in so doing their freedom and independence are not sacrificed, for if peace were to be followed by subjection to alien rule and deprivation of their heritage of liberty, their existence would be without meaning. For them it is deeply painful to watch the agonizing debate stirred up by the instigators of doubt, confusion and defeatism, who, masquerading as princes of peace, are in fact undermining and damaging the abiding interests of their own countries as well as those of their friends and allies.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“To the millions of suffering people in Asia, it seems that the right to call off measures to repel the aggressors, such as the bombing of the North, should be exercised in consultation with them and not by those apostates of peace who barely suffer at the hands of those cruel enemies of freedom and whose campaign for illusory peace has, twice in a lifetime, led to the tragic disaster of world wars. For those millions of Asians whose life is constantly menaced by the aggressors' guns and terror, the halt in the bombing would gain immediate support and approval if it could lead ultimately to the cessation of hostilities as well as that of the harrowing reign of terror. Clearly for them the Viet-Nam war is indeed unpopular , even greatly more unpopular than in Europe or America, which enjoy both safety and abundance.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“It never occurs to them, however, to demand from that régime a positive indication of what it proposes to do in response to such a gesture. In the meantime, they are acting as spokesman and unauthorized agents of Hanoi, while the latter continues to disdain any prospect of meaningful negotiations except on its own terms. In fact, the more the other side shows intransigence and insistence on its unreasonable demands, the more the protagonists of concessions press on with further compromises which ultimately would lead to the surrender and delivery of South Viet-Nam to the North. Indeed, only a few of these advocates have enough courage to admit that South Viet-Nam is not worth saving but should be handed over to its predators of the North for the sake of a temporary peace or even a short-lived truce. 45.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“The people in our Asian part of the world are at present amazed at the emergence of negative values and logic. They find it particularly difficult to understand the strong advocacies by some quarters that the aggressors should be appeased and even protected against their crime. Their life and property should not be molested by aerial bombing, while their atrocities in the South and elsewhere evoke hardly any indignation. Thus, for these would-be pacifists and lopsided idealists, the lives of the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong attackers seem to have much greater value than the throats and limbs of South Viet-Namese and other Asian victims of aggression. That Is why they clamour for unilateral and unconditional cessation of bombing which they contend may bring the aggressive régime of the North to the conference table. 44.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“But if the questions as to what they think of the conflict in Viet-Nam were directed to those Asians who have their feet firmly on the ground and whose vision has not been clouded by the outlandish ideology of the frustrated author of Das Kapital, they would reply in unison that it is in effect an old-styled colonial conquest with only a few renovated outward trimmings. For this so-called sublime liberation with its accompanying paraphernalia is being directed not solely against the Republic of Viet-Nam but actually against a dozen other countries in Asia and Africa. Also, the liberation is always forcible, never voluntary. Consequently, it invariably elicits strong resistance against the forceful invitation to be liberated and to join the paradise of Marxist bondage. 43.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“North Viet-Nam and its supporters in the Communist world as well as its Viet Cong agents in South Viet- Nam wanted the outside world to believe that the war of conquest they have been waging for many years against the small and independent country of" South Viet-Nam is a genuine national uprising or, to use their current terminology, a “war of national liberation.” This travesty of the truth has convinced neither the South Vietnamese people nor those who live near the scene of the crime and who are directly or otherwise suffering from its nefarious consequences. 42. Only those who are farther away, whose minds are less perceptive of the existing realities, and those who are always liberal with other people's freedom or are prompted by less than altruistic reasons allow themselves to fall victims of this crude propaganda.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“The Government of Thailand is pleased to be able to make a modest contribution of rice for the relief of the suffering as a result of the recent hostilities in the Middle East. 41. Of no less or perhaps even greater importance is, in our opinion, the question of the war now raging in Viet-Nam, for it has given rise to such a campaign of fallacies and aberrations, about which so many people unfortunately have displayed such a lack of candour, that there has been created an abysmal chasm between realities on the one hand and the falsehoods and half-truths that the perpetrators of the war and their sympathizers have disseminated.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Likewise, my delegation regrets the refusal of the Government of Israel to heed the call of the overwhelming majority of the General Assembly in regard to the status of the City of Jerusalem. Israel's inflexible attitude on this question may adversely affect the over-all situation and may set another barrier in the path of finding an honourable, just, and definitive solution to the Middle East question. 40. While there is yet no Middle East settlement, the problem of refugees remains a serious concern for us all. My delegation is gratified that, on the initiative of the Swedish delegation, resolution 2252 (ES-V) concerning humanitarian assistance to the Middle East was adopted by the General Assembly at its fifth emergency special session.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Failures of the United Nations so far to face the problem squarely have been, to quote the Secretary-General, "a major contributing factor to the war of last June.11 Is it therefore advisable for us now to try merely to liquidate the consequences of the war and seek at the same time to create necessary conditions which could ensure better prospects for more lasting peace in the Middle East? Withdrawal of troops from occupied areas however immediate and imperative, should, in our view, also be accompanied by additional steps which would remove the basic causes of the armed conflict. 39. In this connexion, my delegation regrets the absence of willingness to negotiate either directly between the parties concerned or through the intermediary of a third party.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“It was regrettable that practical substantive measures which might help to remove the root causes of the conflict were not then adopted. The principal objective of the Thai Government has always been to see long-lasting peace and stability in the Middle East. My delegation therefore believes that basic issues should be faced realistically and not left untouched. 38. The fact that there has been an outbreak of large-scale war three times in the Middle East in the past twelve years is a clear indication of the explosive situation in the area. Yet previous efforts were mainly directed towards making arrangements for bringing about a cease-fire and a cessation of hostilities without attempting to resolve the fundamental causes which led to such hostilities.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“This explains why Thailand is unwilling to take sides in the unfortunate situation in the Middle East which for long years has known neither peace nor reasonable hope of settlement, but which last June exploded into destructive clashes, leaving behind them a long trail of desolation and misery. Even now, the conflict is far from being resolved, embers are smouldering and new conflagrations may erupt if fuel is added to arouse new outbursts of the still highly charged emotions. The best those smaller nations which have no peace proposals or formulae to offer can do, probably would be to refrain from adding fuel to the fire and also, to the best of their ability, prevent possible exploitation of existing dissensions. 37. Such was the attitude taken by the Thai delegation during the fifth emergency special session of the General Assembly.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“They are even more so when accompanied by devious and variegated forms of propaganda which seek not only to deceive and dupe the less informed among us but also to incite and inflame pent-up emotions and to exploit old and new prejudices and hatreds. In the process of the carrying out of their designs, various kinds of aid may be resorted to, including the provision of liberal quantities of arms and other material of war which encourage the embittered people to throw themselves into battle and exterminate one another. 35. The foregoing elements may well constitute the root causes of many tragedies now unfolding in our troubled world. We will therefore have to make strenuous efforts and exercise our wiser judgement to protect ourselves against the lurings of false promises and the exhortations of subtle and treacherous propaganda. 36.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Let us, the smaller and weaker nations, candidly face the facts and realize that the imminent dangers which may descend upon our nations are less likely to come from nuclear deployment — although that can never be ruled out — than from combinations of military and political ventures which their proponents euphemistically call "wars of national liberation", and which, to all intents and purposes, are hardly different from the one which Adolf Hitler launched against the Sudetenland nearly thirty years ago. Such undertakings nowadays may be more insidious but they are no less lethal to our free and healthy existence.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“If, on the contrary, we refuse to be taken in by those who only pay lip service to peace, who try to assume the role of angels of peace but whose wings are strangely blackened by gun smoke and stained with blood, and instead concentrate our efforts on attaining honourable and durable arrangements which will allow many nations to live together without the risk of being dominated or destroyed, then the prospects for world peace and harmony will become infinitely brighter and more promising. 34.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“If that is the case, then the forthcoming discussions, which will in all probability go on for the next two or three months, will be fruitless and will yield no worth-while result for the future peace of the Middle East and South-East Asia. All of us will then return home empty-handed, our hopes and desires to see long-lasting peace and tranquillity reign in this world frustrated, and the spectre of renewed or more intensified conflict will be looming high and large over the horizon.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“As a result of this seemingly unfortunate situation, like many other representatives of smaller countries which constitute the great majority of the membership of this Organization and which place their faith and reliance.in the United Nations as an instrument to preserve and maintain peace in this world, we have come to this important meeting with our hearts heavy and full of perplexity about the outcome of our present deliberations. 33. The question uppermost in our minds is whether this Assembly will follow, as previously, the same road which was marked by useless recriminations and invectives, with little, if any evidence of serious search for more constructive solutions and more permanent settlement.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“At present, as this Assembly passes from an emergency session into a regular one, it has on its hands at least two burning problems, either of which has the potentiality of upsetting the peace of wide regions of the world and the well-being of scores of millions of human beings. 32. While international problems grow in urgency and acuteness, the capacity of the United Nations to deal with them effectively appears to develop in inverse proportion.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“31. The past few months have been for the United Nations — and for many of our countries — a trying period. For while disturbances in Asia, particularly the war in Viet-Nam, go on unabated, the brief but devastating armed conflict which broke out in the Middle East last June added a new dangerous dimension to the already acute state of international tension. Confronted with that explosive situation, this fragile Organization of ours stood, as before the Viet-Nam problem, almost spellbound helplessly watching the fast moving episodes of a modern tragedy roll by. Only after the shells and bullets ceased to rain, sowing death and destruction, have efforts for peace begun, mostly in the forms of words — not all of them measured and constructive.”
1967-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 22 (1967)
“Paul VI, whose visit to this Assembly has brought us a profound spiritual inspiration that peace must guide the destinies of men and nations.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“However, with far-sightedness and a spirit of give and take and compromise, they could be adjusted to the mutual satisfaction of all the parties concerned and remain on the path of peace and harmony rather than that of discord and conflict. The United Nations, to us, has been and will remain for a long time to come a useful centre for harmonizing the conflicting ideologies and national interests. If we know how to use it with moderation and due considerateness, this Organization of ours, can faithfully serve our individual and collective interests and, above all, the cause of international goodwill. 177. As a Buddhist whose faith is fundamentally based on peace — peace for all men as well as peace among men and among nations — I prayerfully join in responding to the ardent plea made by His Holiness Pope.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“On the other hand, powerful as ideas and ideologies may be, national interests have played and undoubtedly will continue to play, a dominant role in the conduct of international affairs. On occasion, when ideologies come blatantly into direct confrontation, the realization of one's own national interests, especially the interest of preserving global or regional peace, may help put the ideological conflict into proper perspective and thus prevent its effects from upsetting the general peace. It is our hope that this reality may be borne in mind when sustained efforts are being made to resolve the difficulties in Viet-Nam. 176. On the other hand, national interests themselves may not always be concordant.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“As in the past, the seeds of present, and possibly of future, conflicts lie in opposing ideas or ideologies and, of course, national interests. If the nations of the world, both within and outside this Organization, could be persuaded to adopt a live and let live attitude of recognizing for others the same freedom they want for themselves to choose the political and economic system or the ideology which they consider to be most suitable for their own development and interests, and not to seek to impose on others the system of their choice, then some of the causes of serious frictions would have been removed. If such could be the case, peoples would be able to enjoy the benefits of true coexistence, which will be more permanent than a temporary truce. 175.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“The Thai Government, in view of convenient facilities and the existence of many other United Nations agencies in Bangkok, would welcome its establishment in our capital. 173. In our present world of diversity, contrast and contradictions, frictions and even clashes are bound to occur. While, in general, efforts to smooth them over can be successful, nevertheless, some differences inflamed by highly charged emotions have developed into conflicts with resort to force of arms. These are the possibilities we have to reckon with. However, with the present destructive power of modern weapons, the risk is too great to allow any conflict to take place, for it may develop into world-wide conflagration. For these reasons, it is always preferable to prevent it from happening than to halt it. 174.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“We are thankful that in those momentous efforts, we have been assisted by the United Nations and by many well-intentioned friends. Our gratitude goes to each and every one of them. 172. In this connexion, our Government and people are pleased to welcome President Johnson's proposal to assist in the development of South-East Asia and particularly in the implementation of the Mekong River Project. As this is a proposal likely to lay a firm and constructive basis for a long-lasting peace, it is our earnest hope that other industrialized countries will participate in this gigantic and worthwhile task of uplifting the economic and social well-being of the peoples in the South-East Asian region. We are also gratified at the enthusiastic support from various quarters for the creation of an Asian Development Bank.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“We shall do so with the belief that they will complement our all-out efforts to tackle the problems of development and economic and social advancement. Indeed, for some years already, a quiet revolution has been under way in Thailand. It is not the kind of revolution in which men and women are launched into the streets with empty stomachs and in rags to sack, to burn and to kill, but a revolution to build new schools, new roads and new hospitals, to dam rivers for irrigation and power, and to reclaim new lands for wider cultivation. As our revolution moves on, our people can look back to the path that they have covered, the path that will not be littered with destruction and decay but with achievements as milestones along the road towards progress.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“If I have dwelt at some length on the problems of peace and security and also on the financial problem of the United Nations, it is because, in our opinion, they overshadow all others. It should not in any case be construed as a lack of interest on our part in the discreet but highly constructive work accomplished by the economic agencies and bodies of the United Nations, particularly the Special Fund, the technical assistance programmes and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. Thailand supports to the full those beneficial activities and, as a token of its appreciation, has decided again to increase its contributions to the first two agencies. My country will do whatever it can to increase the effectiveness of these activities by extending its wholehearted co-operation.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“We believe that if the United Nations were to be true to its Charter, it would indeed have to face up to the problem and define the relationship between the Security Council and the General Assembly on the questions of maintenance of international peace and security. We, of course, recognize that the Security Council has a primary responsibility in this matter, but at the same time we are convinced that the General Assembly has a residual power which, in the absence of a Security Council action, can initiate a United Nations peace-keeping measure for the prevention and removal of threats to peace. This peacekeeping operation should, as far as possible, have the support of the majority of the Members of the United Nations, and should also, in our view, be adequately financed. 171.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“How we are going to solve this question is, no doubt, an urgent and weighty task from which we can hardly escape. It may be an understatement to say that the future of our Organization hangs in the balance, and that if no way out can be found owing to the lack of spirit of compromise, the United Nations may well founder. The hope of mankind for a future of universal peace and order will be shattered, the smaller nations in particular will have no reliable anchor and may find themselves adrift and at the mercy of larger predatory Powers. 170. It is also of interest to note that during this session of the General Assembly discussions will take place on the mandate of the Special Committee on Peace-keeping Operations, and that there will be decisions on the modalities for the continuance of its work.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“It may be too soon to know whether the decision not to involve the General Assembly with the question of the applicability of Article 19 of the Charter would in fact have any adverse effects on the life of the Organization. We, however, sincerely hope that the concession on the part of some Member States will encourage others to offer voluntary contributions so that the financial difficulties of the Organization can be solved. 168. In this connexion, I should like to pay a tribute to those well-meaning Member States which have made worthy contributions to tide over the present difficulty. But the problem will be removed only when those who are in arrears in paying their assessed contributions begin to take steps to reverse their hitherto unco-operative attitude. 169.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“Although the General Assembly has been able to function again, it is of no avail to close our eyes to the fact that the financial problem is still with us and that such a problem more or less cripples our Organization. 166. It is true that the nineteenth session of the General Assembly decided, in resolution 2006 (XIX), to set up a Special Committee on Peace-keeping Operations with a particular mandate that the Committee would undertake a "comprehensive review of the whole question of peace-keeping operations" and that, in a spirit of compromise and co-operation by the various parties, the Special Committee, on which Thailand was invited to serve, succeeded in reaching a consensus that enabled the twentieth session of the General Assembly to carry on its work normally in accordance with its rules of procedure. 167.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“This may be an isolated instance of fortuitous understanding. Our hope is that it may become generalized and its application further extended to other areas of disagreement. If that could happen, the world at large would benefit, while strife-torn Asia might find a relief from the effects of world-wide confrontation and concentrate more effectively on the more strictly regional difficulties. 165. Such infrequent occurrence of co-operation is particularly needed in the internal problems of the United Nations. As the challenges to world peace and order increase, it hardly seems to be the moment to weaken the United Nations, which has been and remains the one and only international organization available to deal with various international crises.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“It is to be hoped that all the means now at the disposal of the United Nations and the past endeavours to compose the differences may serve as a basis or as guidance for future attempts to settle this thorny question, as its continuance benefits no one except those who desire to further the policy of their own aggrandizement and who would not hesitate to plunge Asia into greater confusion and chaos. 164. While the over-all picture of Asia has become more sombre as a result of new conflicts that have broken out, a new trend appears to emerge that may be beneficial if it can be further pursued. The major Powers which so far have not been able to act without coming into opposition with one another have for once taken collateral measures directed towards the same objective, namely to bring about the end of hostilities in the sub-continent.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“Although we are aware that important differences have existed between them for some time, we had not thought that force would be resorted to. Fortunately, wisdom has now prevailed and the two sides have shown willingness to cooperate with the United Nations in agreeing to the cease-fire call. Much no doubt, remains to be done, and further efforts by the parties as well as the United Nations, including the permanent members of the Security Council, will have to be exerted to resolve this delicate and complex problem.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“If nonintervention were to apply to all without exception and were not limited to certain quarters; if that notion would not exempt from its application certain activities known as "national liberation movements"; and if ultimately non-intervention were to apply from the start and not at a certain stage of development of any given situation when a previous intervention had already taken place, such as in the case of Viet-Nam, then we would gladly concur with the proposal. For what we seek is not to intervene in other people's affairs, but to prevent outside intrusion into our own. 163. While we were preoccupied with the threats to the security of our neighbours and our own land, we were distressed by the armed conflict which broke out between two-countries with which Thailand entertains close relations.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“Other aggressions would almost inevitably have followed and the whole of South-East Asia might well be aflame and might eventually lead to another world conflagration. In that respect the situation in South Viet-Nam in the course of this year presents certain similarities to that of Europe in 1935-1936. The difference between what existed then and the situation now may be that the seeds of world-wide conflict have been rendered sterile by the opportune intervention. 162. What has been said above will no doubt have a bearing on the commendable proposal for this Organization to issue a declaration on non-intervention. We certainly will support such a proposal, provided that we reach a clear understanding as to the meaning and scope of application of the proposal.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“However, facing the massive forces threatening our existence, our strength alone may be inadequate. That is why, in the case of South Viet-Nam, the people and Government of that country have been compelled to ask for assistance from outside. Had it not been for the timely intervention of nations willing to undertake the heavy responsibility for peace and freedom, the people of South Viet-Nam might already have succumbed to the vicious onslaughts from the north. Intervention in this case has been beneficial to freedom and to peace. Without it, some 15 million free men and women could by now have joined a so-called "liberated" concentration camp, and another aggression would have been consummated. But even if South Viet-Nam had been lost, the threat of aggression would not have ended there.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“After all, what the simple folk in Africa, Asia and Latin America desire is the basic freedom to enjoy the gifts with which nature has endowed their lands, without the oppression of foreign overlords or indigenous proconsuls who would take orders from faraway lands and compel them to live under iron- fisted régimes which are alien to their traditions and philosophy. 161. Because of this threat to our free existence, nations like mine have no other choice than to redouble their efforts to increase their national strength and, when necessary, to join up with like-minded friendly nations in resisting and combatting encroachments on their national heritage. As far as possible, we prefer to reply on our own resources to safeguard our national patrimony.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“Even though it now makes its effects felt mostly in our part of the world, there is no guarantee that other areas, such as Africa and Latin America, are completely immune from its infection. In fact, we already know that these aggressive undertakings are being extended across the oceans and well beyond South-East Asia, to similar aggressive attacks, they may be interested in watching our own experience in warding off the threats and dangers to our freedom and independence. Furthermore, since all these nations share a similar stake in preserving their hard-won sovereign independence, they may also want to join together in exerting at least a moral authority against the insatiable aggressors. 160.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“The stake involved therein is not only the life or death of two or three nations in South-East Asia, but even more importantly, the future security and well-being of many countries around the world. The objective of the aggressors in South-East Asia is not merely to deprive a few nations of their free existence; rather they seek to shatter the present precarious world order and replace it with their own imperialistic grand design. If they are allowed to accomplish just that, the world may be plunged into the greatest of cataclysms from which many stand to lose. 159. This is the problem which touches our simple people of South-East Asia even more closely than those of nuclear warfare and nuclear proliferation.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“They therefore prefer the agony of long and bloody struggle rather than bowing to the dictates of outsiders and losing what they hold dear: their freedom and independence. 157. This Assembly, which is composed of many former dependent territories, is well aware that the process of decolonization has been proceeding satisfactorily thanks to the persistent efforts of the United Nations. What is now taking place in certain parts of South-East Asia does not aim at hastening that process but at reversing it, and placing the nations recently liberated from colonial shackles under an even tighter and more enduring bondage. 158. As this struggle goes on, its full meaning can well be realized.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“In this connexion, I should like to say that I will not waste the time of this Assembly by replying to the many statements recently made by the Cambodian representative, as they contain nothing worthy of consideration except the usual propaganda elements to further a noxious policy against peace and stability in South-East Asia. 156. The question as it is actually posed in practice is not whether nations like South Viet-Nam or Laos should or should not be free to choose their form of government and to shape their own societies. Being sovereign States, they are fully entitled to follow the national course which is desired by their people. The difficulty arises when their neighbours to the North seek to thrust upon them a political and social system which is not to their liking as it tends to make them subservient to outside control.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“They have therefore had to fabricate changes and to set up so-called patriotic fronts which, as we all know, are nothing but their own creatures. 155. In all these activities, the trend can be clearly seen through, and that trend is pure expansionism aiming at aggression against and control over free countries and peoples. The camouflage they have thrown over their evil designs is too thin and too transparent to deceive anyone, and only people like the Cambodian leaders, who share in similar aggressive policies, can be deluded into supporting these nefarious enterprises.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“In the two above-mentioned countries, South Viet-Nam and Laos, the pretence of liberation has been, to some extent, successful in creating doubts in the minds of far-away people unfamiliar with the situation in our part of the world. However, when those aggressive forces sought to extend their expansionist campaign against my country, Thailand, the mask has had to be dropped. Instead of announcing their programme of liberation, they have had to declare plainly and openly that they intend to carry out guerrilla warfare against Thailand. This naked admission was unavoidable because they happened to know that my country has been independent all through its history and stands in no need of liberation.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“They are entirely subservient to directives and control emanating from there and can subsist only with support and supply from those two sources. The troops which have been committed to fight against the legal Government of Laos have been trained, equipped and staffed with cadres from those two nations. In spite of the fact that the Geneva Agreements of 1961-1962 gave it a legal foothold in the coalition Government set up thereafter, this pro-Communist faction was not satisfied with the benefits it had derived from those Agreements and it aims at securing complete control over the entire Kingdom. When its intrigues were foiled, it resorted again to force in order to overthrow the legally constituted Government. 154.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)
“It is no wonder, therefore, that the South Viet-Namese people have categorically rejected this so-called liberation attempt by the North, and have put up a long and heroic resistance right up to the present day. 153. Although the situation in the Kingdom of Laos is now quiescent, that country has also been a victim of the same pattern of "liberation". There the aggressive forces from the north, for some years, have been infiltrating, subverting and organizing insurgency activities which they euphemistically call a "liberation movement". In fact, such a group of misled people, known as the Pathet Lao, is no more independent from the control centres in Hanoi and Peking than a province of any of the two countries.”
1965-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 20 (1965)