Czechoslovakia, 1982

Mr. President, allow me to congratulate you on

your election to your high office at this

thirty-seventh session of the General Assembly.

We are convinced that your election reflects both

an appreciation of your personal abilities and an

expres¬sion of the wide international prestige

enjoyed by the people of your country, whose

contribution to the strengthening of peace and

international security is well known. We wish you

and the Secretary- General full success in your

responsible work.

92. This is the second time in the last four

months that we have met to consider developments

throughout the world and seek ways of joining

forces as effectively as possible for the

implementation of the noble prin¬ciples of the

Charter. However, this time again it is with a

feeling of considerable concern that we are

forced to note that the current international

situation con¬tinues to be alarming and complex.

We are deeply convinced that this cooling of the

political climate did not have to occur at all.

There are not nor can there be any rational

grounds for it. The policy of detente, after all,

has asserted itself as a clearly demonstrable

historic achievement of nations.

93. Unfortunately, for certain circles of

imperialism and reaction the departure from such

a generally beneficial policy and attempts to

return to the practices of the cold war have

become virtually a line of policy. What

inventions they manage to come up with Just as in

the years of the witch hunts, today, again, their

agents are trying to resurrect the specter of

com¬munism, looking for its long arm in

everything bad; and, not unlike inquisitors, they

are accusing the socialist countries of all the

deadly sins, with the absurd intention of getting

them to the stake reserved for heretics. They are

doing their utmost to disrupt the

military-strategic balance—that basis of

stability in today's world—and to shift it to

their benefit. They are constantly launching new

rounds of the arms race. They are inventing

monstrous concepts of a preventive nuclear

strike, or the so-called limited or protracted

nuclear war, which they even assert can be - won.

They are also reviving the discredited policies

of embargoes, boycotts and sanctions. They are

using methods of pressure, blackmail, force,

aggression, barbarity and genocide wherever

circumstances still permit them to do so.

94. The deterioration of the international

situation is therefore not the result of forces

beyond our control. It is determined by quite

concrete deeds of quite concrete Governments, h

is consequently the duty of every Member of this

world Organization to do everything possible to

safeguard reliably and effec¬tively the most

fundamental human right—the right to life. The

possibilities in this respect are great and the

will of the peoples to live in peace is

indefatigable. That is why the policy of detente,

thanks to the deep and strong roots it has taken,

especially in Europe, can and must go on and must

continue to bear fruit. This assertion is

supported by demonstrable facts.

93. First, all the commitments embodied in the

Final Act of the Conference on Security and

Co-operation in Europe, signed at Helsinki in

1975, remain in force, and to their full extent.

They are in no sense archival documents, as some

might prefer. On the contrary, they continue to

serve as a living code, tested in practice, and

as a reliable compass for the policies of the

majority of European States.

96. Secondly, important bilateral and

multilateral agreements are being carried out.

These form a time- tested international legal

basis which is an irreplace¬able factor in the

construction of a peaceful Europe. Among them let

us in particular recall the treaties concluded by

the Soviet Union, Poland, the German Democratic

Republic and Czechoslovakia with the Federal

Republic of Germany, and the four-Power Agreement

on West Berlin.

97. Thirdly, the political dialogue between

East and West continues in an effort to

strengthen the infra¬structure of both European

and international detente. The mechanisms

established to seek a reduction of military

confrontation and to strengthen mutual

understanding and confidence in the interest of

more reliable stability and security continue to

function.

98. Fourthly, the wide-ranging and

time-tested mechanism of consultation on each

other's positions, which at first sight sometimes

are apparently irrecon¬cilable, is being

consolidated and expanded in order to preserve

and further activate the spirit and letter of the

Helsinki Final Act.

99. Fifthly, despite all artificial obstacles

and dis¬criminatory measures, Europe-wide

commercial and economic co-operation continues.

The implementation of the gas-pipeline contract,

the biggest project of this century tackling the

energy problems of Europe, is the latest example

of that co-operation.

100. Sixthly, the dialogue in the fields of

culture, education, information and human

contacts continues.

101. Seventhly, the anti-war and anti-nuclear

move¬ment is becoming a dynamic factor in the

European political climate.

102. It can thus be noted with satisfaction

that those who are trying to devalue detente have

not been successful and are not succeeding now.

This valuable asset can undoubtedly be further

enhanced qualita¬tively and expanded

geographically if responsible statesmen display

sufficient political will to do so.

103. The great profitability of the policy of

detente and the fact that it is beneficial for

all are, after all, best attested to by the

example of Europe, that obviously most stable

region of our uneasy planet. Thanks precisely to

detente, some remarkable and salubrious changes

have occurred in Central Europe, where

Czechoslovakia is located, in that ancient

critical area which has been the epicenter of two

destructive world wars. Above all, there is a new

awareness that, for the first time in European

history, the peoples of our continent have seized

the historic opportunity of creating practical

conditions for peace, security and peaceful

co-operation, and have done so despite all

existing political, economic, philosophical and

social differences.

104. Czechoslovakia, too, has contributed its

share to the creation of this accomplishment,

which histori¬cally is completely new. As was

already observed at the Helsinki Conference by

our President, Gustav Husak, it has helped to

create an important element of stability which is

in such sharp contrast to the pre-war history of

constant conflict and tension, in particular in

the central part of Europe.

105. The normalization achieved between

Czecho¬slovakia and the Federal Republic of

Germany and the continuing fruitful development

of mutually advantageous relations based on it

have become an important factor in the system of

European security. This is true also with respect

to the normalization of relations with Austria:

since pending questions have been resolved, a

rich structure of mutual con¬tacts, including

political contacts at the highest level, has been

created and peaceful co-operation on our

continent has thus been strengthened. Our

com¬prehensive co-operation with Finland

represents a logical implementation of the Final

Act. Our joint search with France for new ways of

developing relations also offers hope. Our

relations with Greece, the Republic of Cyprus and

Luxembourg are unde¬niably of benefit to detente.

106. After many years of negotiations with

other signatories to the Helsinki documents—the

United States and the United Kingdom—negotiations

began immediately after the Helsinki Conference,

the question of Czechoslovakia's monetary gold

has been resolved. Agreements were signed last

January between Czechoslovakia and the United

States and between Czechoslovakia and the United

Kingdom on compensation for claims and the

settlement of financial issues which had

encumbered our relations with those countries

since the end of the Second World War. In

February part of the 18.4 ton gold treasure

stolen during the occupation of Czechoslovakia by

the Hitlerites was returned by Washington and

London to Prague. Thus one of the last

outstanding issues remaining from the time of the

Second World War was resolved and a serious

obstacle removed from the path to the

normalization of our relations, in particular

with the United States. In this, too, we see

confirmation of the fact that, given good will on

both sides, there are no insoluble problems.

107. In the past we have constantly pointed

out the mutual benefits resulting from what we

have come to call the materialization of detente.

This is borne out by facts. Suffice it to mention

that there has been a more than six fold mutually

balanced increase in trade between the socialist

and the capitalist States in the last 10 years.

Czechoslovakia's share in this useful exchange

with advanced capitalist countries repre¬sented a

trade turnover last year of more than $6 billion.

108. A similar picture is to be seen in

cultural, educational and scientific contacts. We

have maintained from the very beginning that

progress in this field contributes to mutual

cultural enrichment and growing mutual

confidence. The number of these projects places

our country in the top ranks of the participants

in the Helsinki Final Act. In the last 10 years

our cultural exchanges have doubled in volume.

Last year, for instance, this represented 100,000

persons—55,000 of them travelling from

Czechoslovakia abroad and 45,000 foreigners

visiting Czechoslovakia on the basis of more than

70 existing cultural agreements. We have been

organizing numerous prestigious international

cultural projects in our country, such as the

"Days of Culture" of Finland, Belgium, Mexico and

Tunisia, or the recent successful "Days of

Culture of the Federal Republic of Germany in

Czechoslovakia"—the first such project in the

history of the two States—or the "Days of Culture

of Austria in Czechoslovakia" that are being

prepared for next year. In this way we can say

that virtually every day the culture of some of

the Western participants in the Helsinki

Conference is present in Czechoslovakia. Of

course, all those are but a few examples of the

viability and future- oriented nature of the

policy of detente.

109. In the conditions of the nuclear age

there is no other reasonable alternative to

peaceful coexistence in relations among States.

There can be no doubt about the truth of this

conclusion. A return to the cold war,

confrontation or a flight from the nuclear threat

into stone age caves are certainly not Mason-

able alternatives. This is the main motive of the

search for answers to the key questions of today

and tomorrow: How can war be eliminated from the

life of society? How can a nuclear catastrophe be

averted? How can we assert and develop what we

have in common and not what divides us? After

all, the high¬est values are at stake here, and

Hamlet's "To be or not to be" is appropriate, in

the sense of whether the most basic conditions

necessary for life on this planet will be

preserved. In the historic answer to these

questions we must not admit a shadow of doubt.

Let us therefore answer unequivocally,

definitively and resolutely.

110. As was said from the rostrum of the

Assembly at the twelfth special session, the

second special session devoted to disarmament,

the preparation of a nuclear war must be stepped.

We therefore fully support the commitment made by

the Soviet Union not to be the first to use

nuclear weapons, a commit¬ment contained in the

message of the highest Soviet representative,

Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev, addressed to the Assembly

at that recent session . We value this highly as

a truly historic deed which, if emulated by the

other nuclear Powers, would free the world from

the danger of the use of nuclear weapons. It is

this attitude to nuclear war which we consider to

be a decisive criterion when judging the degree

of responsibility with which individual States—4n

particular the countries in the North Atlantic

Treaty organization [NATO] and, above all, the

United States—approach the safeguarding of

peaceful life on our planet.

111. As for the allegation that this

obligation ignores conventional weapons, let us

recall that it is precisely the authors of these

objections who from the very beginning have been

blocking the conclusion of a world treaty on the

non-use of force in international relations, a

proposal which has been on the negotiating table

for a number of years.

112. Czechoslovakia is emphatically in favor of a

complete and definitive liquidation of nuclear

weapons, of eliminating without delay the causes

of the development of new types and systems of

such weapons. We are against their proliferation.

Figura¬tively speaking, to eliminate the causes

and thus to eliminate in time the risk of

destabilizing the strategic situation means in

practical terms to do away in the first place

with the testing of nuclear weapons. That is why

we welcome and fully support the proposal for the

speedy conclusion of a treaty on the complete and

general prohibition of nuclear weapon tests

sub¬mitted from this rostrum several days ago by

the Soviet Foreign Minister, Mr. Gromyko. The

conclusion of such a treaty would undoubtedly be

facilitated if all the nuclear Powers were now to

declare a moratorium on all nuclear explosions,

including peaceful ones.

113. We value equally highly yet another new

Soviet proposal for invigorating the efforts of

States to eliminate the threat of nuclear war and

safeguard the secure development of nuclear

energy. The General Assembly should qualify the

deliberate destruction of a peaceful nuclear

facility, even if carried out with conventional

weapons, as a nuclear attack and thus, in keeping

with the Declaration on the Prevention of Nuclear

Catastrophe this would be qualified as the

gravest crime against humanity.

114. We attach exceptional importance to the

successful conduct and positive outcome of

Soviet- American negotiations on the limitation

of nuclear weapons in Europe. As a central

European country directly threatened by

existing—and even more so by the Pentagon's

envisaged—nuclear missile systems for NATO we

believe that it is necessary to follow up the

sincere expressions of good will with which the

Soviet Union has so significantly encouraged the

talks so far.

115. We hold the view that the question of

whether progress will be achieved in nuclear

disarmament and whether peace can thus be

strengthened depends largely on whether

Soviet-American agreement is reached on the

limitation and reduction of strategic weapons.

That objective can be attained only on the basis

of full respect for the principles of equality

and equal security, while preserving everything

positive that has already been achieved by the

two sides in negotiations so far.

116. We are also profoundly disturbed by the

devel¬opment of binary and other types of

chemical weapons of mass destruction, as well as

by the unprecedented, plans of the United States

for their deployment in previously unheard-of

amounts to the west of the borders of our

Republic. The prompt achievement of a ban on

these dangerous weapons in the spirit of the

Soviet draft of the basic provisions of a

con¬vention on the prohibition of the

development, pro¬duction and stockpiling of

chemical weapons and on their destruction is, in

our opinion, one of the most urgent tasks of all.

117. We advocate the preparation without delay

of a convention prohibiting the deployment of any

weapons in outer space, and we fully support the

draft con¬vention submitted by the Soviet Union

last year/ Further, in the Geneva Committee on

Disarmament, negotiations should be intensified

on other disar¬mament issues, including the

prohibition of neutron and radiological weapons,

and agreement should be reached on further

concrete measures of disarmament.

118. Sincere and fruitful co-operation among

all States in the solution of disarmament

questions is today more necessary than ever

before. We therefore believe that the consistent

implementation of the Declaration on

International Co-operation for Disar¬mament,

adopted on the initiative of my country at the

thirty-fourth session of the General Assembly

remains highly timely and relevant. It is a

document which urges States to participate

actively in disarmament negotiations and to do so

constructively, with initiative, to demonstrate a

sincere political will to achieve tangible

results in such talks and, last but not least, to

conduct those talks on the basis of strict

respect for the principle of equality and equal

security, to refrain from developing new trends

in the arms race and not to misuse disarmament

negotiations as a screen behind which to add new

spirals to the arms race.

119. As a direct participant in the Vienna

Talks on Mutual Reduction of Forces, Armaments

and Associated Measures in Central Europe, we

have literally a vital interest in their

successful progress and, above all, tangible

results. We believe that the best way to achieve

progress is to proceed without delay with the

drafting of the text of the agreement. We are

convinced that the proposal submitted by the

socialist countries last February provides an

equitable basis for that task. We regret that our

Western part¬ners are frustrating our efforts by

persisting, even in their most recent proposal,

in the old so-called asymmetrical model of

reduction, which is motivated by an endeavor to

gain considerable unilateral military advantages

at the expense of the security of the Warsaw

Treaty States.

120. We expect that the forthcoming resumed

Madrid meeting of the Conference on Security and

Co-operation in Europe will also have important

things to say with regard to the solution of the

burning issues of disarmament and the reduction

of the danger of military confrontation. We wish

to emphasize from this rostrum our interest in

that meeting and our feeling that it should be

conducted in the spirit of a constructive

dialogue, should reaffirm the continuation of the

process of detente and should reach a success¬ful

conclusion as soon as possible by adopting a

substantive and balanced final document,

including a mandate for the convening of a

conference on confidence-building measures and

disarmament in Europe. We believe that a positive

role in that respect can be played by the

constructive proposals of the neutral and

non-aligned countries. We very much hope that the

results of the Madrid meeting will strengthen the

prerequisites for the continuous expansion and

creative development of the European initiative

in Helsinki.

121. However, we wish to express our concern

that the success of the meeting is being

jeopardized

by efforts to revive the policy of dealing with

the socialist countries from a position of

strength and of undermining the very foundations

of East-West economic co-operation by

heavy-handed and unscru¬pulous sanctions.

122. We have followed with great concern the

deterioration of the political climate in various

hotbeds of tension. Czechoslovakia firmly

denounces the further manifestations of Israeli

aggression in the Middle East which are shielded

by Washington's political, military and economic

support within the framework of the agreement on

so-called strategic co-operation.

123. We feel profoundly indignant at the gross

intervention against Lebanon which culminated in

the recent gory massacre of Palestinian and

Lebanese civilians in west Beirut. As one of the

members, along with Bolivia, Denmark, Panama and

the Philip¬pines, of the former United Nations

Commission on Palestine which was established by

resolution 181 (II) of 29 November 1947 and which

was called upon to supervise the termination of

the British Mandate in Palestine and the

establishment of independent Arab and Jewish

States on its territory—a resolution as yet

regrettably unimplemented—we state with the

utmost clarity that Israel must immediately and

unconditionally withdraw its troops beyond the

internationally recognized borders of Lebanon.

The sovereignty, territorial integrity, unity and

political independence of Lebanon must be

strictly respected, as is required by the

decision of the recently resumed seventh

emergency special session of the General Assembly.

124. As for the overall solution to the

situation, the only possible way to a just and

lasting peace in the Middle East is the

consistent observance of the prin¬ciples which

correspond to the general norms of international

law and the relevant resolutions of the Security

Council and the General Assembly. These demand

the return of all Arab territories occupied since

1967, including east Jerusalem, the

implemen¬tation of the inalienable right of the

Arab Palestinian people to self-determination and

the establishment of its own independent State on

the territory of Palestine, free from Israeli

occupation, on the West Bank of the Jordan and in

the Gaza Strip, the safe¬guarding of the right of

the Palestinian people to return to their homes

or to receive appropriate compensation for the

property which they have abandoned, the

safeguarding of the right of all States in the

region to a secure and independent existence and

to development, and the preparation and adoption

of international safeguards for the settlement,

which could be guaranteed by the permanent

members of the Security Council or by the Council

as a whole.

125. We note with satisfaction that this

position of ours is substantially in accord with

the conclusions of the Twelfth Arab Summit

Conference. These objectives, however, cannot be

attained through the compromised Camp David

deals, but only by multilateral collective

efforts, preferably by an international

conference on the peaceful settlement of the

situation in the region, with the participation

of all interested parties, including the PLO, the

sole legitimate repre¬sentative of the Arab

people of Palestine.

126. Our indignation continues to be aroused

by the anachronism of the policy of apartheid,

which has been repeatedly and unequivocally

condemned here, as well as by South Africa's

continuing acts of armed aggression against

Angola, Mozambique and other front-line States;

and furthermore by the attempts to hamper,

through neo-colonialist maneuvers, the

settle¬ment of the question of Namibia on the

basis of the full implementation of the relevant

United Nations resolutions. We express our

solidarity with the Namibian people in the

struggle they are waging under the leadership of

SWAPO for self-determination and independence.

127. The proposals of the Government of the

Democratic Republic of Afghanistan for a

political settlement of the situation around

Afghanistan are viewed by us as a constructive

contribution to a peaceful settlement of the

situation in that region. We also highly value

the efforts undertaken in this respect by the

Secretary-General. In addition, the set of

proposals by the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of

the People's Republic of Kampuchea, the Socialist

Republic of Viet Nam and the Lao People's

Demo¬cratic Republic, including the initiative

proposing the convening of an international

conference to consider the situation in

South-East Asia, constitute in our view an

important step towards changing South-East Asia

into a region of peace, stability and

co-operation.

128. We see the withdrawal of a part of the

Viet¬namese troops from the People's Republic of

Kampu¬chea as an expression of good will and a

desire to resolve the situation in that region by

peaceful means. We declare once again, most

resolutely, that the seat in this Organization

rightfully belongs to the legitimate

representatives of the People's Republic of

Kampuchea and to nobody else.

129. From the very beginning we have held the

view that the continuing senseless conflict

between Iraq and the Islamic Republic of Iran can

and must be terminated as soon as possible by

peaceful meant with respect for the legitimate

rights of both parties. We have on several

occasions expressed our position on the matter to

both sides. We support the peace mediation

efforts by the countries of the non-aligned

movement.

130. We hold unswervingly to the position that

the inalienable right of peoples to

self-determination and to decide independently on

their own fate must be fully respected in Central

America and the Caribbean region also. The

threats by American imperialism against Cuba,

Nicaragua, Grenada and other States of Central

America and the Caribbean, like the ruthless

suppression of the struggle of the patriotic

forces in El Salvador, have no other result than

the exacerba¬tion of tension and the endangering

of peace in those regions. We sympathize with the

efforts of the Carib¬bean States to transform the

region into a zone of peace, independence and

development.

131. We advocate the settlement of the

decoloniza¬tion problem which came to a head this

year in the South Atlantic—by means of

negotiations on the basis of United Nations

resolutions and of the deci¬sions adopted by the

non-aligned movement, parti¬cularly the

conclusions of the Ministerial Meeting of the

Co-ordinating Bureau of the Non-Aligned

Countries, held from 31 May to 5 June 1982 at

Havana .

132. We resolutely support the efforts of the

Govern¬ment of the People's Democratic Republic

of Korea for the peaceful reunification of Korea

and the with¬drawal of United States troops from

the southern part of the country.

133. We continue to favor the solution of the

question of Cyprus in the spirit of the

well-known United Nations resolutions on the

subject. That is the only way to ensure the

restoration of the sover¬eignty and territorial

integrity of the Republic of Cyprus, its

independence and non-aligned status.

134. We are in favor of settling existing

conflicts peacefully and averting potential

conflicts. In that context we support the Soviet

proposals for negotiations on confidence-building

measures in the Far East and the strengthening of

peace and security in Asia and the Persian Gulf,

and the proposal of the Mongolian People's

Republic for the conclusion by the States of Asia

and the Pacific of a convention on the mutual

non-use of force that applies also to the

proposals for effective measures to enhance

secu¬rity, particularly in the Mediterranean and

Indian Ocean regions. The timeliness of those

initiatives is underscored by the fact that they

are designed to restore health to the

international climate in these important regions

of the world and thus to strengthen peace in the

world as a whole.

133. Czechoslovakia values highly the activity of

the non-aligned movement against war and for

disar¬mament and social progress. We are

convinced that by proceeding consistently on the

basis of progressive, peaceful and

anti-imperialist positions the non-aligned

movement can play a significant positive role,

parti¬cularly in the current complex

international situation.

136. Proceeding from positions of principle,

we shall continue to extend our support to the

efforts of the developing countries aimed at

overcoming the con¬sequences of colonial and

neo-colonial rule and bringing about a

substantive restructuring of inter¬national

economic relations on an equitable, equal and

democratic basis.

137. Czechoslovakia, as a socialist State and

a member and a strong integral part of the

defense alliance of the socialist community of

States in the Warsaw Treaty Organization, remains

unswervingly faithful to the ideals of peace.

138. We are ready to co-operate with all

delegations to ensure that the thirty-seventh

session of the General Assembly fulfils the hopes

which humanity has placed in it and contributes

to finding ways of limiting the arms race,

halting the dangerous exacer¬bation of

international tension, developing detente and

building confidence among States with different

social systems. in this way alone will it be

possible to strengthen and enhance the role of

the United Nations in interactional relations and

enable it consistently to implement its ideals,

thus fulfilling its mandate and meeting the

expectations of nations.