Iran, 1946

During the first part of the first session of the General Assembly in London, our President pointed out that a great deal of time would be saved if we refrained from repeating what other speakers had already said here. Even if I do not follow this sound advice completely, I shall in any case endeavour to be very brief and try not to repeat what has already been said so eloquently by previous speakers.

Nevertheless, I feel bound to associate myself with the other delegations in thanking the City and State of New York for the welcome they have given us and the facilities they have afforded us.

My country had, and continues to have, faith in the United Nations. It was with this same faith that the Iranian Parliament unanimously approved the Charter of the United Nations. We feel convinced that through the United Nations, and the United Nations alone, world peace and security will be preserved. We have confidence in the United Nations because we are convinced that the General Assembly and the Security Council will not make any decisions or recommendations that are inconsistent with the principles laid down in the Charter.

We know that the United Nations will respect the territorial integrity and political independence of Member States. If that independence is to be really respected, the stronger States must refrain from interfering, in no matter what form and on no matter what pretext, in the internal affairs of the weak ones. Such interference would stir up conflicts and provoke disputes. My country has been the victim of such interference in the past, and unfortunately we cannot even yet congratulate ourselves on being safe from this danger.

I would like to compliment the Secretary-General and his collaborators on the valuable report he has submitted on the work of the Organization. We are glad to note the efforts made by the Economic and Social Council and the results it has obtained in such a short time. The Secretary-General’s report deals with vast and varied questions, most of which are of special interest to my country. I will not go into details now, for the Iranian delegation will have an opportunity to state its views when these problems come up for discussion during the forthcoming meetings of the General Assembly.

I do, however, feel bound to say a few words about a question which has been dealt with by the majority of delegations, namely, the so-called right of veto. As everyone knows, the Iranian delegation fought this issue at San Francisco. We even voted in favour of an amendment, similar in tenor to our own, proposed by the Australian delegation, and it was only when the right of veto was approved by the majority of the Conference that we recognized it. Subsequent developments have not been such as to bring about a change in our attitude. For the time being we do not intend to press for the revision of Article 27, a step which several Members of the Assembly consider premature, but we have every hope that, during these discussions and in the future, this right will be exercised in accordance with the principles of justice and equity.